Efficacy of Sofosbuvir Plus Ribavirin with and without Pegylated Interferon-Α in Patients with HCV Genotype 3A Infection

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a serious problem in low and middle income countries including Pakistan. Objective: To compare the efficacy of combination therapy, Sofosbuvir plus Ribavirin with and without Pegylated Interferon-α in HCV genotype 3a infected patients. Study Design: Randomized control trial Place and Duration: Department of Gastroenterology, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad, during from 16th April 2017 to 15th October 2017. Methodology: One hundred and fifty four HCV infected patients with genotype 3a were included in this study. Detailed demographics were recorded after taking informed written consent. Patients were divided in two groups (A and B) randomly, Group A was offered with Sofosbuvir plus Ribavirin with Pegylated Interferon-α for 12 weeks and Group B was offered with Sofosbuvir plus Ribavirin for 24 weeks. The sustained virological response (SVR) after 12 weeks of therapy was compared between the study groups. Results: The frequency of SVR12 was comparatively higher in patients treated with Sofosbuvir plus Ribavirin with Pegylated Interferon-α (94.8%) than Sofosbuvir plus Ribavirin alone (84.4%) with similar trends in gender and age groups. Conclusion: The combination therapy Sofosbuvir plus Ribavirin with Pegylated Interferon-α had higher eradication rate against HCV genotype 3a in our local setting. Key Words: HCV, genotype 3a, Sofosbuvir, Ribavirin, Pegylated Interferon-α, SVR12