Last update:
28-Nov-2016

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major health problem worldwide. The serious results of chronic infection are cirrhosis, portal hypertension, hepatic decompensation and hepatocellular carcinoma. Individuals who are chronically infected with HCV have a lower quality of life than that of the general population. The goal of HCV treatment is to cure the infection in order to prevent the complications of HCV-related liver and extra-hepatic diseases. For many years the treatment of chronic HCV hepatitis has been inadequate. Now, 25 years after the identification of HCV, novel orally administered antiviral drug combinations that yield infection cure rates of over 90% have been approved. Current treatment strategies are based on the combination of direct-acting antiviral (DAA) drugs. Four classes of HCV DAAs are currently available: NS3-4A protease inhibitors (simeprevir, paritaprevir), nucleotide analog inhibitors of the HCV RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (sofosbuvir), non-nucleoside inhibitors of the HCV RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (dasabuvir) and NS5A inhibitors (daclatasvir, ledipasvir, ombitasvir). These drugs allow for simplified and shortened treatment regimes for HCV. They can be taken orally with better tolerability and efficacy than interferon-based antiviral therapy and are currently the best options, when available. A new exciting era in hepatology has just begun.

Key words: Daclatasvir, Dasabuvir, Direct acting antiviral drugs, Hepatitis C virus, Ledipasvir, Ombitasvir, Paritaprevir, Simeprevir, Sofosbuvir.