Optimisation of triple therapy for patients with chronic hepatitis C: a systematic review

Triple therapy with Pegylated-Interferon α (PEG-IFNα)/Ribavirin (RBV) and Boceprevir (Boc) or Telaprevir (Tel) significantly improved sustained virological response (SVR) rates for patients with genotype 1 HCV infection compared to PEG-IFNα/RBV alone (dual therapy). However, less is known about factors associated with rates of SVR and of adverse events (AEs).

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the evidence regarding the factors affecting response and rate of AEs associated with triple therapy. We performed systematic electronic searches in Medline, Embase, Scopus and Central as well as a list of reference literature. We included randomised controlled trials examining triple therapy compared with dual therapy and reporting data according to patients features and about AEs. Odds ratios (OR) were pooled using either fixed or random effect model, as appropriate.

We included data from 14 studies. Treatment with triple therapy increased SVR rate compared to dual therapy especially in patients previously treated with PEG-IFNα/RBV and with increased pretreatment alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels. Higher rate of serious AEs and treatment discontinuation due to AEs was also observed particularly in treatment-experienced patients.

The present study shows how improved results of triple therapy are mainly observed in some patients' subsets and are accompanied by increased risk of AEs compared to dual therapy. These results might be useful for optimising treatment of chronic hepatitis C when IFN-free regimens are unavailable.