Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 24, 2026
Lentiviral Vector-mediated Gene Therapy of Hepatocytes Ex Vivo for Autologous Transplantation in Swine
Published on: November 4, 2018
Treatment of Patients With Hepatitis C Virus Infection With Ledipasvir-Sofosbuvir in the Liver Transplant Setting
Faisal Abaalkhail1, Hussein Elsiesy, Hany Elbeshbeshy
11 Department of Liver Transplantation & Hepatobiliary-Pancreatic Surgery, Division of Organ Transplant Center, King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center-Riyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 2 College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 3 Department of Internal Medicine, Minia University, Minia, Egypt. 4 Department of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA. 5 Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Background:
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma and the leading indication for liver transplantation. In the Middle East, genotype 4 HCV infection is the most common genotype. However, limited data exists on the treatment of genotype-4 in the liver transplant setting. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of ledipasvir (LDV)-sofosbuvir (SOF) in treating HCV genotype-4 infected patients with cirrhosis or postliver transplantation.
Methods:
This prospective, single-arm, observational study includes cohort of patients with cirrhosis before liver transplantation (cohort A) and a cohort of postliver transplantation patients (cohort B). Patients received LDV/SOF (90-400 mg) once daily for 12 to 24 weeks with or without ribavirin (RBV). Patients with creatinine clearance below 30 were excluded.
Results:
A total of 111 patients (61 cirrhotic; 50 postliver transplants) with HCV genotype 4 were treated in King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center; 55% cohort A and 44% cohort B received RBV. Sustained virological response sustain virological response (SVR)12 was 91.8% and 86% of cohorts A and B, respectively. There were no treatment-related mortality or serious adverse effects. RBV dose reduction occurred in 25% without any treatment discontinuation. SVR12 rates in cohort A were significantly higher in patients with a viral load below 800 000 (100% vs 83.9%, P value = 0.022). Viral load did not impact SVR rates in cohort B. The use of RBV did not increase SVR12 and was associated with anemia.
Conclusions:
LDV/SOF without RBV is an effective and safe treatment option for patients with HCV genotype 4 infection in preliver and postliver transplant settings.
More Related Videos
06:28Immunofluorescence to Monitor the Cellular Uptake of Human Lactoferrin and its Associated Antiviral Activity Against the Hepatitis C Virus
Published on: October 1, 2015
10:25"Liver-on-a-Chip" Cultures of Primary Hepatocytes and Kupffer Cells for Hepatitis B Virus Infection
Published on: February 19, 2019