Daclatasvir

Daclatasvir, sold under the trade name Daklinza, is a medication used in combination with other medications to treat hepatitis C (HCV). The other medications used in combination include sofosbuvir, ribavirin, and interferon, vary depending on the virus type and whether the person has cirrhosis. It is taken by mouth once a day. Daclatasvir, sold under the trade name Daklinza, is a medication used in combination with other medications to treat hepatitis C (HCV). The other medications used in combination include sofosbuvir, ribavirin, and interferon, vary depending on the virus type and whether the person has cirrhosis. It is taken by mouth once a day. Common side effects with sofusbivir and daclatasvir include headache, feeling tired, and nausea. With daclatasvir, sofusbivir, and ribavirin the most common side effects are headache, feeling tired, nausea, and red blood cell breakdown. It should not be used with St. John's wort, rifampin, or carbamazepine. It works by inhibiting the HCV protein NS5A. Daclatasvir was approved for use in Europe in 2014 and the United States and India in 2015. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines, the most effective and safe medicines needed in a health system. As of January 2016 a twelve-week course cost around $63,000 in the United States, $39,000 in the United Kingdom, $37,000 in France, and $525 in Egypt. Daclatasvir is used only in combination therapy for the treatment of hepatitis C genotype 1, 3, or 4 infections; the agents used in combination, which include sofosbuvir, ribavirin, and interferon, vary based on the virus genotype and whether the person has cirrhosis. It is not known whether daclatasvir passes into breastmilk or has any effect on infants. There is a serious risk of bradycardia when daclatasvir is used with sofosbuvir and amiodarone Because it has not been extensively studied as a single agent, it is unknown what specific side effects are linked to this medication alone. Adverse events on daclatasvir have only been reported on combination therapy with sofusbivir or triple therapy with sofusbivir/ribavirin. Common adverse events occurring in >5% of people on combination therapy (sofusbivir + daclatasvir) include headache and fatigue; in triple therapy (daclatasvir + sofusbivir + ribavirin) the most common adverse events (>10%) include headache, fatigue, nausea and hemolytic anemia. Concomitant use of drugs that are strong inducers of the cytochrome P450 CYP3A is contraindicated due to decreased therapeutic effect and resistance of drug. Some common drugs that are strong CYP3A inducers include dexamethasone, phenytoin, carbamazepine, rifampin and St. John's Wort.