Introduction
Velpacee is a combination of two antiviral medicines. This prescription medicine is used in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. It fights against the viruses to resolve the infection.
Velpacee should be taken in the prescribed dose and duration. It can be taken with or without food, but take it at the same time daily. It is advised not to consume more than the recommended dose. It is important to inform your doctor if you have any health conditions such as liver or kidney disease. It is harmful to consume alcohol along with this medicine, so it is advised to limit or avoid alcohol. The course of the medicine should be completed for better results.
The common side effects of this medicine are tiredness and headache. You should drink plenty of fluid and eat a healthy diet to prevent or overcome the side effects. Before taking the medicine, inform your doctor if you are taking any other medicines or supplements.
Uses of Velpacee
- Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection
How to use Velpacee
Take this medicine in the dose and duration as advised by your doctor. Swallow it as a whole. Do not chew, crush or break it. Velpacee may be taken with or without food, but it is better to take it at a fixed time.
How Velpacee works
Velpacee is a combination of two antiviral medicines: Sofosbuvir and Velpatasvir. They work by lowering the amount of hepatitis C virus in the body and removing the virus from the blood over a period of time.
Indication
Chronic Hepatitis C
Administration
May be taken with or without food
Adult Dose
Oral
Adult
Chronic Hepatitis C
Indicated for adults with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection genotypes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6
1 tablet (400 mg sofosbuvir/ 100 mg velpatasvir) qDay
Patients without cirrhosis or with compensated cirrhosis (Child-Pugh A): Sofosbuvir/velpatasvir for 12 weeks
Patients with decompensated cirrhosis (Child-Pugh B or C): Sofosbuvir/velpatasvir plus weight-based ribavirin with food for 12 weeks
Hepatic impairment
Mild, moderate, or severe (Child-Pugh A, B, or C): No dosage adjustment required
Child Dose
Safety and efficacy not established
Renal Dose
Renal impairment
Severe renal impairment (eGFR <30mL/min/1.73 m²) or ESRD: No dosage recommendation can be give owing to higher exposures (up to 20-fold) of the predominant sofosbuvir metabolite
Contraindication
Hypersensitivity.
Mode of Action
Sofosbuvir: Inhibitor of HCV NS5B RNA-dependent polymerase; its inhibition, in turn, suppresses viral replication
Velpatasvir: Pangenotypic HCV NS5A inhibitor; the NS5A protein is required for viral replication
Precaution
Direct-acting antivirals (DDAs) may reactivate hepatitis B virus (HBV) in patients who have a current or previous HBV infection while being treated for hepatitis C virus
In a few cases, HBV reactivation in patients treated with DAA medicines resulted in serious liver problems or death
Patients should be screened for evidence of current or prior HBV infection before starting treatment with DAAs, and monitored for HBV flare-ups or reactivation during DAA treatment and posttreatment follow-up
Serious symptomatic bradycardia may occur if sofosbuvir is coadministered with amiodarone in combination with another direct-acting antiviral (eg, daclatasvir, simeprevir)
Lactation: Unknown if sofosbuvir, velpatasvir, or their metabolites are distributed in human breast milk
Side Effect
>10%
Without cirrhosis or with compensated cirrhosis
Headache (22%),Fatigue (15%)
With decompensated cirrhosis
Fatigue (32%),Anemia (26%),Hemoglobin <10 g/dL (23%),Nausea (15%),Headache 11%),Insomnia (11%)
1-10%
Without cirrhosis or with compensated cirrhosis
Nausea (9%),Asthenia (5%),Insomnia (5%),Lipase increase >3 x ULN (3%),Rash (2%),Depression (1%),Increased creatinine kinase >10 x ULN (1%)
With decompensated cirrhosis
Diarrhea (10%)
Hemoglobin <3.5 g/dL (7%),Rash (5%),Increased creatinine kinase ≥10 x ULN (2%)
Interaction
Coadministration with drugs that increase gastric pH are expected to decrease velpatasvir serum concentration