Medical experts are concerned about some hepatitis C treatments because of the possibility of reactivating hepatitis B in patients.
This is the second time this year that some of the top-selling drugs for hepatitis C – including Exviera, Viekirax, Olysio and Daklinza – have been a concern for the European Medicines Agency, according to Reuters.
All hepatitis C patients should make appointments with their physician to make sure they haven’t contracted both viruses before beginning hepatitis C treatment.
In October, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration made the same recommendation when it issued a warning about hepatitis C treatment medicines.
European medical experts said further studies were needed to confirm the link between treatment and the hepatitis B reactivation.
“Cases of the return of previously inactive hepatitis B infection, which can be fatal, have been reported in patients treated with direct-acting antivirals who were infected with hepatitis B and C virus,” the EMA’s Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee wrote in a press release.