Efficacy and safety of ledipasvir/sofosbuvir for hepatitis C among drug users: a systematic review and meta-analysis

• Published in: Virology journal 2021-07, Vol.18 (1), p.156-13, Article 156
• Main Authors: Yang, Xue, Tang, Yang, Xu, Di, Zhang, Guang, Xu, Peng, Tang, Houlin, Pang, Lin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alcohol; Antiviral agents; Antiviral Agents - therapeutic use; Antiviral drugs; Benzimidazoles - therapeutic use; Bias; Care and treatment; Drug abuse; Drug addicts; Drug dosages; Drug therapy; Drug use; Drug Users; Fluorenes - therapeutic use; Genotype & phenotype; Genotypes; GLP-1 receptor agonists; Hepatitis C; Hepatitis C - drug therapy; Humans; Infections; Ledipasvir and sofosbuvir; Liver; Management; Meta-analysis; Patient outcomes; Review; Secondary data analysis; Sofosbuvir - therapeutic use; Sustained Virologic Response; SVR12; Systematic review
• ISSN: 1743-422X; 1743-422X
• DOI: 10.1186/s12985-021-01625-w

Limited data is available on the efficacy of direct acting anti-viral drugs on hepatitis C in drug users. The aim of this meta-analysis was to comprehensively analyze the efficacy and safety of LDV/SOF in drug users infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV). The PubMed, Cochrane library, Embase and Web of Science databases were searched for articles published till April 2021 on HCV-positive drug users who were treated with ledipasvir/sofosbuvir (LDV/SOF). The primary endpoint was pooled sustained virological response at 12 weeks (SVR12) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Funnel plots and Egger's test were used to assess the publication bias. A total of 12 studies and 711 subjects treated with LDV/SOF-based regimen for HCV were included, and the pooled SVR12 rate was 89.8% (95% CI 85.9-92.7). The pooled SVR12 rate of genotype 1 drug users was 92.4% (95% CI 88.6-95.0). Subgroup analysis showed that pooled SVR12 rates of patients treated with LDV/SOF and LDV/SOF ± RBV were 89.2% (95% CI 83.4-93.1), 90.4% (95% CI 83.6-94.5) respectively. In addition, the SVR12 rates were 88% (95% CI 70.7-95.7) for 8 weeks, 89.9% (95% CI 81.0-94.9) for 12 weeks and 82.2% (95% CI 24.9-98.5) for 24 weeks of treatment. LDV/SOF is a safe and relatively effective treatment for hepatitis C in drug users.