The study is looking at the potential of utilizing a "point of care" test and treat pathway; using the DDA called Zepatier for achieving SVR in an homeless population who have tested positive for genotype 1 or 4 HCV.
Direct acting antivirals (DAA) are new medications that have been approved for the management of HCV. These drugs have proven to be very effective in curing the HCV, without the need for interferon injections; which have always been used in the past. There are many combinations of DAAs, which treat specific types of HCV. Persons who test positive for the virus are typically referred to be seen and treated by a specialist hepatitis service based in hospital. This means that individuals may sometimes not attend the hospital to commence treatment; or follow up on their management. The study is designed to explore if testing and treating individuals close to their own "local" setting will be an improvement to the current treatment pathway and encourage better involvement with the health care team; as well as looking at what the health care team can do to ensure participants in this test-and-treat trial receive the entire course of drug treatment prescribed to treat their HCV infection. Participants infected with either genotype 1 or 4 HCV infection will be treated with Zepatier, a DAA which works by stopping the hepatitis C virus from (multiplying). The study medication is taken for 12 or 16 weeks depending on the genotype (or strain of HCV). Some participants will be given an additional drug called ribavirin. The study will examine the effectiveness of Zepatier at clearing the hepatitis C virus from the blood and body; and also what particular effects may be experienced by participants who may also be taking treatment for other conditions. Participants affected with other genotypes (not 1 and 4)will be offered standard NHS treatment with the appropriate antiviral combination for these strains.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
13
Zepatier 50/100 OD , with addition of Ribavarin in patients with Genotype 1a and 4 with HCV RNA\> 800,000 iu/ml or baseline NS5A resistance.
Kings College Hospital NHS Trust
London, United Kingdom
SVR
The percentage of participants achieving an SVR, defined as an HCV RNA evel less than the lower limit of quantification by sensitive PCR; by means of a short directed test and treat program in the homeless community.
Time frame: 24 months
prevalence of HCV infection
Reduction in local prevalence of of viraemic hepatitis C, after a pilot trial of treatment in three to four homeless hostels.
Time frame: 24 months
Baseline knowledge evaluation
Participant knowledge of their hepatitis C status (disease, diagnosis, and current available approved treatments) will be assessed by means of a questionnaire completed at baseline. The researchers will also review participants willingness to engage in a test and treat protocol and correlate these findings with demographic and sociological data. This will be done using a questionnaire designed by the researchers; containing simple questions with respect to currently available testing and treatment of HCV infection.
Time frame: 24 months
Change From Baseline (BL) to SVR12 timepoint in 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) Scores
The 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) is a set of generic, coherent, and easily administered quality-of-life measures. The survey addresses eight health concepts: physical functioning, bodily pain, role limitations due to physical health problems, role limitations due to personal or emotional problems, emotional well-being, social functioning, energy/fatigue, and general health perceptions. It also includes a single item that provides an indication of perceived change in health. Participants self-report on items in a subscale that have between 2-6 choices per item using Likert-type responses (e.g. none of the time, some of the time, etc.). Summations of item scores of the same subscale give the subscale scores, which are transformed into a range from 0 to 100; zero= worst HRQL, 100=best HRQL. Data will be analysed ffg the guidelines suggested by the developers https://www.rand.org/health/surveys\_tools/mos/36-item-short-form/scoring.html
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Time frame: baseline, SVR 12 (twelve weeks post end of active treatment/ last dose of study drug)
Change From Baseline (BL) to SVR 12 in Chronic Liver Disease Questionnaire-Hepatitis C Virus (CLDQ-HCV)
Impact of a localized test and treat protocol on health related quality of life will be assessed using the CLDQ-HCV instruments. The CLDQ-HCV is a disease-specific questionnaire measuring HRQL that contains 29 items divided into 4 domains: emotional function (9 items), worry (6 items), systemic symptoms (8 items) and activity/energy (6 items). All items refer to the previous 2 weeks and are rated on a 7 point Likert scale, with 1 corresponding to the maximum frequency ("all of the time") and 7 to the minimum ("none of the time"). Domain scores are the means of the items contained. A summary score is calculated by the mean of all domain scores (CLDQ-HCV Global). Higher scores indicate better health-related quality of life
Time frame: baseline , SVR 12 (twelve weeks post end of active treatment/last dose of study drug)
Percentage of Participants Who Were Compliant With Treatment According To Moriskey, Green And Levine Adherence Scale (MAS4)(Subset Analysis)
Adherence to treatment measured by Moriskey, Green and Levine Adherence scale. This is a 4 item questionnaire that is easy to administer and score (using a yes/no format); and quickly identifies barriers to adherence.An answer of yes to zero questions indicates high adherence behavior, answering yes to one or two questions indicates medium adherence behavior, and answering yes to three or four questions indicates low adherence behavior
Time frame: 12 or 16 weeks
Percentage of Participants Who Were Compliant With Treatment According To Medication Count (Subset Analysis)
Compliance will be calculated as the amount of dispensed medication minus the amount of medication returned by participants at each visit.
Time frame: 12 or 16 weeks