Hepsera (Adefovir Dipivoxil)

Articles on Hepsera
Prescribing Information
What are Hepsera's Possible Side Effects?
Important Safety Information about Hepsera
Is There Resistance to Hepsera?

Articles on Hepsera (Adefovir Dipivoxil)

Efficacy and Safety of Entecavir Versus Adefovir in Chronic Hepatitis B Patients with Evidence of Hepatic Decompensation
11/03/09

Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate for patients with chronic hepatitis B who have previously failed Lamivudine and Adefovir: effects of baseline sequence mutations on virological response.
11/03/09

Entecavir (Baraclude) Demonstrates Greater Antiviral Activity than Adefovir (Hepsera) in Hepatitis B Patients with Decompensated Liver Disease
11/03/09

Entecavir (ETV) Therapy in Chronic Hepatitis B Patients Previously Treated with Adefovir (ADV) with Incomplete Response On-Treatment or Relapse Off-Treatment
6/05/09

Half of HBeAg Negative Chronic Hepatitis B Patients Maintain Response up to 5 Years after Stopping Long-term Adefovir (Hepsera)
5/05/09

Chronic Hepatitis B Patients Who Had Incomplete Response or Relapse on Adefovir (Hepsera) Respond Well to Entecavir (Baraclude)
5/01/09

Some Individuals Harbor HBV with Adefovir (Hepsera) and Tenofovir (Viread) Resistance Mutations before They Ever Receive Treatment
4/17/09

Two Year Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (TDF) Treatment and Adefovir Dipivoxil (ADV) Switch Data in HBeAg-Positive Patients With Chronic Hepatitis B (Study 103)
3/27/09

Adefovir (Hepsera) Prevents Post-transplant HBV Recurrence as well as HBIG
1/27/2009

Higher Dose of Adefovir (Hepsera) Are Not Effective for Chronic Hepatitis B Patients with Lamivudine (Epivir) Resistance
1/09/2009

Two Year Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (TDF) Treatment and Adefovir Dipivoxil (ADV) Switch Data in HBeAg-Negative Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B (Study 102)
11/05/2008

Cost Effectiveness Simulation Analysis of Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (TDF), Lamivudine (LAM), Adefovir Dipivoxil (ADV) and Entecavir (ETV) in HBeAg Negative Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B (CHB) in the USA
11/05/2008

Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (TDF) versus Adefovir Dipivoxil (ADV) in Asians with HBeAg-Positive and HBeAg-Negative Chronic Hepatitis B Participating in Studies 102 and 103
11/05/2008

Long-term Efficacy and Safety of Adefovir (Hepsera) for the Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B in HBeAg Positive Patients
10/03/08

Combination Therapy with Lamivudine (Epivir-HBV) plus Adefovir (Hepsera) for Chronic Hepatitis B Prevents Resistance to Both Drugs
6/10/08

Pegylated Interferon Alfa-2a (Pegasys) Continues to Suppress HBV, but Adding Adefovir (Hepsera) Provides No Extra Benefit in PEG for B Trial
6/03/08

Tenofovir May Be More Effective and Less Expensive than Lamivudine (Epivir-HBV) and Adefovir (Hepsera) as First-line Treatment for HBeAg- Chronic Hepatitis B
5/09/08

Lamivudine (Epivir-HBV) plus Adefovir (Hepsera) Is an Effective Regimen for Lamivudine-resistant HBV Patients Who Develop Resistance to Entecavir (Baraclude)
5/09/08

Entecavir (Baraclude) Produces Greater Decrease in HBV DNA than Adefovir (Hepsera) in Treatment-naive HBeAg+ Patients: 96 Week Data from EARLY Study
5/09/08

Long-term Adefovir (Hepsera) plus Emtricitabine (Emtriva) vs Adefovir Monotherapy for Chronic Hepatitis
4/18/08

Adefovir (Hepsera) for Treatment of Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B Resistant to Lamivudine (Epivir-HBV)
3/04/08

Tenofovir (Viread) Is Effective after Adefovir (Hepsera), but Not Vice Versa
2/01/08

Telbivudine (Tyzeka) Superior to Adefovir (Hepsera) at 52 Weeks
1/04/08

What are Hepsera's Possible Side Effects?

Hepsera® (adefovir dipivoxil) was compared to a sugar pill (placebo) in clinical trials. The most common side effects observed were weakness, headache, stomach pain and nausea.

Hepsera also can cause the following serious side effects (See Important Safety Information): very serious hepatitis if you stop taking it, a severe kidney problem called nephrotoxicity, lactic acidosis (buildup of acid in the blood) and liver problems.

The most common side effects in patients with liver transplants and chronic hepatitis B were weakness, headache, stomach pain and itching. Some patients with liver transplants also had changes in the way their kidneys worked. If you notice any side effects while taking Hepsera, talk to your healthcare provider about what to do.


Important Safety Information

1. Some people who stop taking Hepsera get a very serious hepatitis. This usually happens within 12 weeks after stopping. You will need to have regular blood tests to check for liver function and hepatitis B virus levels if you stop taking Hepsera.

2. Hepsera may cause a severe kidney problem called nephrotoxicity. It usually happens in people that already have a kidney problem, but it can happen to anyone that uses Hepsera. You will need to have regular blood tests to check for kidney function while you are taking Hepsera.

3. Some people who have taken medicines like Hepsera that are called nucleoside or nucleotide analogs have developed a serious condition called lactic acidosis (build up of an acid in the blood). Lactic acidosis is a medical emergency and must be treated in the hospital. Call your doctor right away if you get any of the following signs of lactic acidosis:

Some people who have taken medicines like Hepsera have developed serious liver problems called hepatotoxicity, with liver enlargement (hepatomegaly) and fat in the liver (steatosis). Call your doctor right away if you get any of the following signs of liver problems.

You may be more likely to get lactic acidosis or serious liver problems if you are very overweight (obese) or have been taking nucleoside analog medicines [Atripla™ (efavirenz plus emtricitabine plus tenofovir disoproxil fumarate), Combivir® (zidovudine plus lamivudine), Emtriva® (emtricitabine), Epivir® Epivir-HBV® (lamivudine), Epzicom™ (abacavir plus lamivudine), Hivid® (zalcitabine), Retrovir® (zidovudine), Trizivir® (zidovudine plus lamivudine plus abacavir), Truvada® (emtricitabine plus tenofovir disoproxil), Videx® (didanosine), Viread® (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate), Zerit® (stavudine) and Ziagen® (abacavir)] for a long time.

4. If you get or have HIV that isn't being treated with medicines, Hepsera may increase the chances your HIV infection cannot be helped with usual HIV medicines. This can happen if you get or have HIV and don't know it, or if your HIV is not being treated while you are taking Hepsera. You should get an HIV test before you start taking Hepsera and any time after that when there's a chance you were exposed to HIV.

Is There Resistance to Hepsera?

Drug resistance is a primary concern of infectious disease specialists around the world. Any virus can develop drug resistance, and may even develop resistance to more than one drug. Resistance occurs when viruses acquire ways to survive the effects of the drugs that were designed to weaken them. Resistance to antiviral drugs presents an obstacle to providing effective long-term treatment of viral diseases, such as chronic hepatitis B.

Hepsera® was studied in clinical trials to find out whether or not resistance would develop. Through 144 weeks (about 3 years), resistance mutations were identified that may reduce the effectiveness of Hepsera. After 3 years of continuous treatment, 4/100 patients developed resistance to Hepsera in clinical trials.

In clinical trials, Hepsera was found to work well in people who had hepatitis B virus that was resistant to the currently approved chronic hepatitis B treatment, lamivudine.