Efficacy of switching to co-formulated elvitegravir/cobicistat/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide combined with sofosbuvir/velpatasvir in treatment of previously untreated chronic hepatitis C patients with HIV/HCV co-infection and its influence on blood lipid levels / 临床肝胆病杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the efficacy of switching to co-formulated elvitegravir/cobicistat/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (E/c/F/TAF) combined with sofosbuvir/velpatasvir (SOF/VEL) in the treatment of previously untreated chronic hepatitis C patients with HIV/HCV co-infection and the changes in blood lipid levels. Methods This prospective cohort study was conducted among 10 previously untreated chronic hepatitis C patients with HIV/HCV co-infection who attended Department of Infectious Diseases in Tangdu Hospital from July 2019 to May 2021 and achieved continuous HIV suppression after antiretroviral treatment (ART). As for anti-HIV therapy, the ART regimen was switched to the E/c/F/TAF regimen for 32 weeks, and for anti-HCV therapy, the SOF/VEL regimen was started since week 4 after switching and lasted for 12 weeks. Related indices were monitored before and after switching to E/c/F/TAF for anti-HCV therapy and SOF/VEL for anti-HCV therapy, including body weight, body mass index, HCV genotype, alpha-fetoprotein, liver stiffness measurement, CD4 + T cell count, CD4 + T/CD8 + T ratio, hepatic and renal function parameters, blood lipids, HIV RNA, HCV RNA, SVR12, SVR24, and adverse reactions. The Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of continuous data between two groups, and a Spearman correlation analysis was performed. Results After 4 weeks of treatment with E/c/F/TAF, 10 patients (HCV genotypes 2a and 1b) had HIV RNA below the lower limit of detection (20 IU/ml) and a significant reduction in albumin ( Z =-2.801, P =0.003 7), with the other indices remaining stable, and the patients reported significant improvements in the adverse events of anti-HIV therapy with the former ART regimen. After 4 weeks of E/c/F/TAF combined with SOF/VEL, the patients had HCV RNA below the lower limit of detection (15 IU/ml), and both SVR12 and SVR24 reached 100%; after 12 weeks of anti-HCV therapy, there were significant reductions in alanine aminotransferase ( Z =-2.732, P =0.004 8) and aspartate aminotransferase ( Z =-2.501, P =0.010 7) and significant increases in total cholesterol (TC) ( Z =-2.797, P =0.003 9) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ( Z =-2.343, P =0.018 5), with a significantly positive correlation between them ( r =0.87, P < 0.001), and all the other indices were normal. Conclusion For previously untreated chronic hepatitis C patients with HIV/HCV co-infection, switching to E/c/F/TAF combined with SOF/VEL has good efficacy, tolerability, and safety, and the combination of the two regimens can avoid drug interaction, achieve a high HCV cure rate, and maintain HIV suppression. Transient increases in TC and LDL-C are observed during combination treatment, which suggests dyslipidemia caused by HCV infection and the pharmacological action of this regimen.