Novartis claims telbivudine better than lamivudine against hepatitis B

Drug company Novartis has found that its telbibudine drug is more effective in dealing with chronic hepatitis B than the standard treatment.

Phase III trials had concluded that patients who had been given telbibudine was better in reducing evidence of hepatitis B virus DNA than lamivudine, which is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline.

The firm said that reduction in virus prevalence in sufferers of the disease stopped the disorder from progressing – “a primary treatment goal” in hepatitis B. The study was the first to include participants from China, where the disease is highly prevalent.

Dr Ching-Lung Lai of the University of Hong Kong said: “Despite recent advances in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B, there remains a need for new safe and effective treatment options.

“The potent viral suppression achieved with telbivudine has the potential to reduce the serious complications associated with chronic hepatitis B and telbivudine’s favourable safety and convenience profile in trials to date also make it a promising treatment option for patients”.

Chronic hepatitis B current affects 350 million people worldwide and is the tenth largest cause of death.

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