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| Interferon plus Ribavirin | ||||||||||||
| Rebetron (Schering-Plough)is a combination of Intron A brand standard interferon plus ribavirin.Studies have shown that the combination works better than interferon alone.The protocol for Rebetron administration is three million units of interferon injected three times per week plus ribavirin taken daily.Studies suggest that the length of treatment depends upon genotype: 48 weeks for genotype 1, and 24 weeks for genotypes 2 or 3. In clinical trials,the average sustained virological response (SVR) rates are approximately 28% for genotype 1 and 66% for genotypes 2 and 3. | ||||||||||||
| Pegylated Interferon Monotherapy; | ||||||||||||
| Peg-Intron (peginterferon alpha 2b) is Schering's brand of pegylated interferon. It comes in a powdered form that requires mixing with a liquid (reconstituting) before injection. It is dosed by body weight.The SVR for Peg-Intron monotherapy is 14% for genotype 1 and 47% for genotypes 2 and 3. | ||||||||||||
| Pegasys | ||||||||||||
| Pegasys (peginterferon alpha 2a)is Roche's brand of pegylated interferon.The standard dose is 180 �g for all patients. It comes in a ready-made solution that does not require reconstitution.The SVR for Pegasys monotherapy is 28% for genotype 1 and 56% for genotypes 2 and 3.Pegasys is also indicated for treatment of people with compensated cirrhosis. | ||||||||||||
| Pegylated Interferon plus Ribavirin | ||||||||||||
| The combination of pegylated interferon plus ribavirin is now considered the standard of care for treating HCV. There are currently two different pegylated interferon/ribavirin combinations that have been approved by the FDA:Schering's PegIntron plus Rebetol brand ribavirin, and Roche's Pegasys plus Copegus brand ribavirin. | ||||||||||||
| (Source of the Article: HCV advocate August 2003) HOME PREV NEXT |
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