The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved rilpivirine for use in adolescents 12 to 18 years of age; it is not recommended for younger children. As in adults, it is suggested for use in ARV-naive individuals with HIV RNA levels of ≤100,000 copies/mL. The dosage is 25 mg daily, to be taken with a meal, and of course in combination with other ARV medications.
Pyrimethamine is no longer available in retail pharmacies in the United States, though it is available through a commercial specialty pharmacy program (the application process, approval, and delivery of the medication will take at least 2 days; for information on ordering, click here).
Tenofovir alafenamide fumarate (TAF) is an investigational prodrug of tenofovir that in studies to date appears to have less renal and bone toxicity than the current tenofovir product, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF). This is because TAF is metabolized to tenofovir in lymphocytes and macrophages (as well as hepatocytes and some other cells), whereas TDF is converted to tenofovir in the blood. With TAF, levels of active tenofovir in plasma are about 90% lower, while levels in lymphocytes are higher.
The prevailing opinion among experts regarding the optimal CD4 T-cell count at which to start patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART) has shifted several times during the evolution of HIV treatment. These shifts reflect attempts to strike a balance between preventing HIV-associated illness and death and minimizing medication-related toxicity. Two large randomized controlled clinical trials, the START study and the TEMPRANO study, now demonstrate that earlier treatment with ART is most beneficial to boost immune recovery and prevent clinical events.
National Quality Center (NQC) has completed its evaluation of the in+care Campaign -- the largest HIV quality improvement initiative carried out at the national level. We are pleased to announce that the Campaign demonstrated significant improvements in national retention and viral load suppression (VLS) performance.
Annual meetings of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-sponsored Elimination of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV (EMCT) Stakeholders Group and the Expert Panel on Reproductive Health and Preconception Care for Persons Living with HIV, held at the Washington, D.C. headquarters of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) the week of May 25th, 2015, provided an exciting and energizing opportunity to discuss challenging clinical and policy issues.
When incorporating best practices and guidelines for HIV care, clinicians must take into account their clients’ mental health and substance use needs. Approximately 30- 50% of people living with HIV/AIDS have current or past severe to moderate depression. At its highest estimate, that’s more than double the prevalence of the general population.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has released new treatment guidelines for adults and adolescents, and these contain some important changes. Key among these is a major shakeup in the "Recommended Regimen Options" for initial therapy.
While there are many unknowns about exactly what the AETCs will look like with the start of the new grant cycle later this year, one thing we do know is that Practice Transformation (PT) and Practice Facilitation will be a part of the work. In fact about 40% of AETC resources will be devoted to the PT projects. This is a new direction for the AETC and there are many unanswered questions about how this work will evolve. As we move toward taking on this challenge some obvious questions arise: Why is Practice Transformation important? What is PT and how can we learn about it? How is PF di
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved once-daily dosing recommendations for lamivudine and abacavir for HIV-infected children. Previously, these NRTIs were approved only for twice-daily dosing in children. The dosing revisions apply to both the oral solution and the tablet formulations of these drugs.
