Sofosbuvir and Ribavirin With or Without Pegylated Interferon for Hepatitis C Genotype 3: A Real World Experience

Background: Documentation of the effectiveness of sofosbuvir and ribavirin with or without pegylated interferon alfa for hepatitis C virus Genotype 3 (HCV GT3) is limited in a real world setting. Objectives: The present study aimed at examining the outcome of the above therapy in a real world setting. Methods: Dual therapy of sofosbuvir and ribavirin was given for 24 weeks and triple therapy with additional pegylated interferon for 12 weeks. Patients received dual therapy when there was unwillingness to take interferon or interferon ineligibility. Results: In this analysis, 241 patients were included, of whom 175 were treated with dual and 66 with triple therapy. The mean age of the patients was 46.6 years, ranging from 20 to 72, and 136 (56.4%) were male. Clinical cirrhosis was present in 151 (62.7%) patients, and 98 (40.7%) had treatment experience. HCV RNA became negative in 225 (93.3%) patients at week 4 of the treatment. End of treatment virologic response was observed in 221 (91.7%) patients, and 199 (82.6%) had sustained virologic response 12 weeks post treatment (SVR12). Undetectable HCV RNA at week 4 was an independent parameter predicting SVR12 (P = 0.001). SVR12 was achieved in 143 (81.7%) patients treated with dual therapy and 56 (84.8%) with triple therapy (P = 0.567). Prior HCV treatment status and presence or absence of cirrhosis did not significantly affect the outcome between the 2 treatment groups. Conclusions: Treatment of HCV GT3 infection with the sofosbuvir and ribavirin with or without PEG-IFN alpha achieved durable responses in a significant number of cases in a real world setting.