The antiviral tenofovir (Viread) by itself is as effective as the combination of tenofovir plus emtricitabine (Truvada) in treating hepatitis B patients who have developed resistance to the antiviral adefovir (Hepsera).
European researchers treated 46 adefovir-resistant patients with just tenofovir and 39 with tenofovir plus emtricitabine for 168 weeks.
Long-term suppression of HBV DNA to low levels (less than 400 copies/mL) occurred in 84% of the tenofovir-treated group and 82% of the emtricitabine plus tenofovir group.
No signs of tenofovir resistance occurred during the three-year study period, and there were no notable side effects in either treatment group.
"Tenofovir monotherapy is as effective as emtricitabine/tenofovir combination therapy in maintaining long-term viral suppression in patients with a suboptimal response to adefovir," researchers wrote in the November issue of the Journal of Hepatology, "and is well tolerated in this population."
