According to an estimation, 8% of the patients suffering from hepatitis C in Europe account for Genotype 2.
It is also called HCV-2 in short.
There are six genotypes and 75 subtypes of the hepatitis C virus.
IFN-based treatment has made HCV-2 an easily treatable genotype of hepatitis.
It is the reason why there are several options when it comes to hep c genotype 2 treatment.
What does it mean to be diagnosed with hep c genotype 2 treatment?
A blood test provides information about being infected.
The same test gives information about the genotype as well.
In rare cases, the patient may get infected with more than a single genotype.
This situation is called superinfection.
In The US, 13 to 15% of the patients are infected by genotype 2.
The genotype of hepatitis C determines the course of treatment that the doctor prescribes.
It also eliminates the chances of a wrong diagnosis and complications due to delayed treatment.
Causes of hepatitis C
It is a viral infection leading to inflammation in the liver.
Hepatitis C can sometimes cause fatal damage to the liver.
Long-term hepatitis or chronic hepatitis may show no symptoms for years.
It is because the virus damages the liver slow enough to go unnoticed.
But once the damage is sufficient, the person may suffer from several symptoms.
Symptoms of hepatitis C are mentioned in the list below.
- Fatigue
- Easy bleeding on slight cuts or wounds
- Easy bruising
- Jaundice and the subsequent yellowing of eyes and skin
- The dark color of urine
- Swelling of legs
- Itching in skin
- Ascites or fluid accumulation in the abdomen
- Losing weight
- Drowsiness, confusion, and slurred speech
- Visible spider-like blood vessels on the skin
Hep C Genotype 2 Treatment Options
15-25% of the patients suffering go without hep c genotype 2 treatment for unknown reasons.
Usually, doctors advise starting treatment after 6 months to determine the infection category ( short or long-term).
In most cases, doctors prescribe some antiviral drugs that flush out the virus from the body.
Many times, a combination of two drugs is given for a minimum of 8 weeks.
The Sustained Virologic Response (SVR) rate of these drugs is as high as 99%.
This means that the infection is curable.
Factors
The doctors prescribe the drugs based on the following factors.
- The overall health of the patient
- The viral load present in the body
- The amount of damage done to the liver
- Whether or not the patient has had hepatitis C before
Some of the most effective combinations of drugs are listed below for genotype 2.
1.
Glecaprevir and Pibrestasvir
2.
Daclatasvir or Dakliza and Sofosbuvir or Sovaldi
3.
Sofosbuvir and Velpatasvir or Epclusa
The SVR rate of many of the drugs used to treat hepatitis C genotype 2 shows that the disease is highly curable.
Genotypes 4 and 6 are not very common.
On the other hand, genotype 5 is very rare in The US.
Drugs similar to that used to treat genotype 2 are used to treat all other genotypes.
Thursday, March 17, 2022 at 1:17 PM