Hepatitis C and the Impact of Combination Therapy: Utilizing  Copegus

For individuals who suffer from hepatitis C viral infections, there are many choices in treatment available on the market today. Often, as a hepatitis patient, you may rely upon the sole discretion of your healthcare professional to choose the right therapeutic agent for your health condition.

For many hepatitis C patients, the choice of therapy comes in the form of a combination of drug therapies, often using a drug known as Copegus. Manufactured and distributed by Roche, Copegus, when used in combination with other prescription medications, can provide some restoration of liver function in those patients who suffer from compromised liver disease.

For optimal dosing and therapeutic benefit, Copegus should be used with drugs such as Pegasys or other interferon alfa-2a recombinant drugs. Used alone in the treatment of hepatitis C, Copegus will not provide a therapeutic benefit.

Dosing of Copegus is recommended, in combination with other therapeutic drugs for hepatitis C, at 800 milligrams per day over a 48 week period. Using Copegus longer than 48 weeks has not proven effective.

As a Category X prescription medication, Copegus can not be used in the treatment of hepatitis C among pregnant women, or women who are at risk for becoming pregnant, due to the clear indication that birth defects are attributed to Copegus use during pregnancy.

In addition, those patients who experience complications involving blood disorder, suffer from anemia or even suffer from pre-existing cardiovascular complications, Copegus, in treatment of hepatitis C, may not be indicated due to the potential for decrease in red blood count.

As with most FDA approved medications, the use of Copegus, in treating hepatitis C as a combination drug, does not come without side effects. However, if your side effects result in abnormal mental processing, the development of anxiety or depression, the development of abnormal kidney and liver complications, or the sudden change in cardiovascular function, consult your prescribing physician immediately as this may be an indication of a far greater adverse reaction to Copegus.

As with any complication associated with hepatitis, the key to successful management of the health complication lies in the early diagnosis and treatment. While there is no cure for hepatitis C, using combinations of therapeutic agents can provide for a more beneficial outcome rather than using monotherapy. When considering a cocktail form of treatment, consult with your best doctor regarding the use of Conegus to treat hepatitis C when in combination with other prescription medications used on treating hepatitis.