Ledifos Tablets Uses, Benefits and Side Effects

Ledifos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir) is a combinational drug intended for patients suffering from Hepatitis C viral (HCV) infection with genotype 1, 4, 5, or 6. Ledifos, the fixed-dose combination (FDC) of ledipasvir 90 mg and sofosbuvir 400 mg, combined has a high efficacy rate allowing 93% to 99% of sustained response against the HCV infection.

In some scenarios, Ledifos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir) is used in combination with ribavirin. Mostly, the FDC drug is taken in a form of single-dose once daily i.e. 1 tablet (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir combination). Ledifos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir) is taken orally via mouth.

Ledifos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir) dosage in HCV patients in HCV genotype 4, 5 and 6:

HCV genotype 1 or 4: Ledifos (Ledipasvir + sofosbuvir) plus ribavirin for 12 weeks

Therapy-naïve and experienced liver transplant patients without cirrhosis or with compensated cirrhosis

HCV genotype 4,5 or 6: Ledifos (Ledipasvir + sofosbuvir) for 12 weeks

Therapy-naïve and experienced liver transplant patients without cirrhosis or with compensated cirrhosis

Note:

Therapy-naïve: Patients without any earlier treatment
Therapy-experienced: Patients who had therapy earlier, including a failed therapy comprising of peginterferon/ribavirin or peginterferon alfa/ribavirin/HCV protease inhibitor
Compensated cirrhosis: Cirrhosis with a functional system
Decompensated cirrhosis: Cirrhosis without a functional system

Other activities of the FDC combination drug:

Ledipasvir:

Ledipasvir absorbs in the system within 4 hours and 30 minutes after entering the system. With the binding affinity of 99.8%, it binds efficiently with HCV cells without any fuss. It begins its activities by specifically restricting the multiplication of viral cells through inhibition of NS5A protein. Once these activities are done and the viral load is suppressed, more than 50% of the drug is expelled from the body in 47 hours.

Sofosbuvir:

Addition of ledipasvir with sofosbuvir increases the potency of both drugs. The mode of action of both the molecules are exactly similar to each other with few changes like,

Absorption time in between 30 minutes to 2 hours
61% to 65% of binding affinity with HCV cells
Inhibition of NS5B protein
40 minutes to 27 hours of excretion time for 50% of drug

Warning signs for Ledifos (ledipasvir 90mg + sofosbuvir 400mg):

Cautionary warnings:

If patients feel that their heartbeat is comparatively slower than the normal (bradycardia), doctor should be immediately consulted
If patients had a history of or are currently suffering from Hepatitis B viral infection before starting Ledifos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir)

Kidney impairments:

Check patients if they are suffering from kidney disease or planning for dialysis therapy

Liver impairments:

If patients underwent liver transplant surgery before starting Ledi fos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir)
If patients have liver problems other than the current HCV infection

Other warnings:

If patients are taking any sort of non-prescribed or prescribed drugs, herbal medicines, or dietary supplementary
If patients are allergic to food, medicines or other substances
Avoid having intercourse (sex) without condoms, HCV may spread to your partner if you are under treatment
If patients are pregnant and planning to breastfeed

Side-effects of Ledifos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir):

It has a favourable safety profile due to the occurrence of minimal side-effects. In general usage, headache, weakness, and tiredness (Fatigue) are the most common side-effects of the FDC drug. However, there are certain severe side-effects which require immediate medical attention these include slow heart rate (bradycardia) and hepatitis B viral reactivation.

Ledifos (ledipasvir + sofosbuvir) can also trigger a few uncommon side-effects including,

Lack of sleep (Insomnia)
Shortness of breath (dyspnea)
Diarrhea
Nausea

Note: These are not all possible side-effects of (ledipasvir 90mg + sofosbuvir 400mg), please refer your doctor for more information.

Ledifos