Viral Kinetics of Treatment With Peginterferon Alpha-2a, Ribavirin and Epoetin β in Patients Coinfected HCV/HIV

Overview

The purpose of this study is to compare the early virological response (EVR = undetectable \[ribonucleic acid-hepatitis C virus\] RNA-HCV or a reduction of \> 2 log10) of patients with chronic hepatitis C coinfected with HIV treated with induction doses of peginterferon alpha-2a (40 KD) 270 µg/week and ribavirin 1600 mg/day for 4 weeks, followed by 8 weeks of treatment with peginterferon alpha-2a (40 KD) 180 µg/week and ribavirin 1000-1200 mg/day versus treatment with peginterferon alpha-2a (40 KD) 180 µg/week and ribavirin 1000-1200 mg/day for 12 weeks.

This study seeks to ascertain whether treatment with higher doses of PEGASYS (270 µg/week) and ribavirin (1600 mg/day) for the first four weeks achieves the plasma concentrations of the product in the blood needed to reduce the half-life of the virions and accelerate the elimination thereof. This would bring the viral kinetic curves in coinfected patients closer to the model described for mono-infected HCV patients, probably achieving improved rates of response in week 12 (early virological response) and posterior in week 72 (sustained virological response). Therefore, the patients were randomised to treatment with two different doses, 270 µg and 180 µg of PEGASYS, and 1600 mg and 1000-1200 mg of ribavirin.

Conditions