Adefovir dipivoxil and pegylated interferon alpha for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B: an updated systematic review and economic evaluation

To update and extend a 2006 report on the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of adefovir dipivoxil (ADV) and pegylated interferon alpha (PEG-alpha) for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Thirteen bibliographic databases were searched including MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library. Searches were run from the beginning of 2005 to September 2007. For the clinical effectiveness review, randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing ADV, PEG-alpha-2a and PEG-alpha-2b with currently licensed treatments for CHB, including non-pegylated interferon alpha (IFN-alpha) and lamivudine (LAM), were included. Outcomes included biochemical, histological and virological response to treatment, drug resistance and adverse effects. A systematic review of economic evaluations of antiviral treatments for CHB was conducted. The economic Markov model used in the 2006 report was updated in terms of utility values, discount rates and costs. `