LAUSR

BACKGROUND AND AIM Grazoprevir is an NS3/4A protease inhibitor (PI), while elbasvir is an NS5A inhibitor. We performed this meta-analysis to directly compare grazoprevir plus elbasvir and ribavirin regimen vs. grazoprevir and elbasvir without ribavirin in the treatment of hepatitis C virus genotype 1 infection and to precisely evaluate the efficacy of the latter regimen in cirrhotic, IL28 CC genotype patients and those coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus. MATERIAL AND METHODS A computer literature search of PubMed, Scopus, EBSCO, Embase, and Cochrane central was conducted. Studies were screened for eligibility. Sustained virologic response (SVR) rates were pooled using OpenMeta[Analyst] software for windows. A subgroup analysis was performed to stratify the treatment efficacy according to the different baseline characteristics of HCV patients. RESULTS Eight randomized controlled trials (n = 1,297 patients) were pooled in the final analysis. The overall SVR rate was 96.6% with 95% CI [95.5% to 98%]. For cirrhotic patients, the SVR rate was 95.7% with 95% CI [93.9% to 97.5%] and for non-cirrhotic patients, the SVR rate was 97% with 95% CI [95.9% to 98.4%]. Furthermore, the addition of ribavirin (RBV) to the treatment regimen did not significantly improve the SVR (RR 1.003, 95% CI [0.944 to 1.065]). The dual regimen was effective in patient populations with NS3 resistance-associated (RAS). However, this regimen achieved lower SVR rates (< 90%) in patients with NS5A RAS. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that the 12-week treatment regimen of the fixed dose combination of grazoprevir plus elbasvir achieved high SVR rates in patients with HCV genotype 1 infection. The addition of ribavirin to this regimen did not add a significant benefit.