Ventricular Extrasystoles after First Dose of Sofosbuvir in a Patient Treated with Propranolol but not with Amiodarone: A Case Report

BACKGROUND: Sofosbuvir is a direct-acting antiviral drug used to treat chronic hepatitis C infection. In 2015, Gilead Sciences, the manufacturer of sofosbuvir, warned that bradycardia could occur when sofosbuvir is administered in combination with amiodarone. Interestingly, among the reported cases of patients with sofosbuvir and amiodarone related bradycardia, some of them were also treated with propranolol. OBJECTIVE: We herein report a case of ventricular extrasystoles within three hours after the coadministration of sofosbuvir-containing regimen with propranolol. This patient had never been treated with amiodarone. After the sofosbuvir-containing regimen was stopped, ventricular extrasystoles disappeared within 24 hours. This observation suggests that the association of sofosbuvir with propranolol may have a role in the emergence of cardiac arrhythmia. CONCLUSION: Patients treated with amiodarone and/or propranolol should be continuously monitored within the early hours following the initiation of sofosbuvir.