Three Children Treated with Direct-acting Antivirals for Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 1b Infection

Although direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) have significantly increased the sustained virological response (SVR) rates in chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected adult patients, the efficacy and safety for children remain unclear. We herein report three HCV-infected children who received DAA treatment. The patients were girls 10-13 years old who had been infected with genotype 1b HCV by vertical transmission based on a phylogenetic tree analysis. Two patients were treated with 12 weeks of ombitasvir/paritaprevir/ritonavir, and the other patient was treated with 8 weeks of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir. All children received DAA doses that were similar to the dosages for adult patients. None developed adverse events, and all children achieved an SVR.