When Do HIV Medicines Stop Working?
This leads to the development of drug resistance.
The mutations reduce the HIV response to certain antiretroviral drugs, reducing treatment efficacy.
What is HIV drug resistance?
HIV develops mutations that may reduce its susceptibility to antiretroviral drugs.
The virus can develop resistance with respect to a single drug or to multiple drugs.
Multi-drug resistance may occur when the HIV reduces susceptibility to the same drug class or multiple other drug classes.
Why does a person develop resistance to HIV medication?
Missed doses-
When a person skips or misses the medication.
It reduces the drug concentration and may increase replication or multiplication of HIV.
This favors the development of resistant viral strains.
Pretreatment resistance-
It is a condition in which a person is infected with an HIV strain that is already resistant to certain molecules.
The resistance may be developed due to –
- Previous exposure to the antiretroviral drug.
- Transmission of a drug-resistant virus from another person.
Drug interactions – A few drugs may interact with antiretroviral, reducing their effectiveness.
Absorption-related problems –
Certain gastrointestinal issues or chronic diseases may alter the absorption of antiretroviral drugs.
What are the warning signs that treatment may be failing?
Treatment failure cannot be determined merely by the viral load or the symptoms.
Increased viral load-
Reduced effectiveness of the antiretroviral drugs causes the virus to multiply.
The failure of the treatment cannot be determined by a single spike.
A persistent increase in viral load must be evaluated for treatment failure or drug resistance.
Decreased CD4 count –
CD4 cells are immune cells.
HIV depletes immune cells, lowering their count.
Recurrence of certain symptoms-
Due to a weakened immune system and a rise in viral load, certain symptoms recur.
One may feel fever, fatigue, headache, and swollen lymph glands.
These symptoms do not necessarily indicate HIV treatment failure.
These must be evaluated for the underlying cause.
How to manage HIV drug resistance?
Identifying the mutations-
A genotypic drug-resistance test is run to identify specific mutated strains.
Switch regimens-
A combination of HIV drugs must be changed based on the resistance-test results and the patient’s previous history.
Avoid stopping or missing the drug treatment –
One must not stop the medication on one’s own, as it may speed up resistance or cause treatment failure.
HIV Treatment Medicines (antiretroviral drug combinations):
- Temirazer (Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate, Emtricitabine)
- Tudobest-L (Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate & Lamivudine)
- Virarazer (Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate, Emtricitabine & Efavirenz)
At Aprazer Healthcare, we manufacture a generic range of medicines.
We are an HIV medicine manufacturer and exporter.
We export HIV drugs to countries in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
We also offer contract manufacturing services.
- Manufacturing units compliant with GMP
- End-to-end regulatory compliance
- Strict quality assurance and quality control
FAQs
Can HIV resistance be detected through blood tests?
It can be assessed through –
- Genotypic resistance testing
- Phenotypic resistance testing
Do HIV medicines lose effectiveness with time?
HIV medicines do not lose effectiveness on their own.
The efficacy may be reduced due to –
- Sub-optimal adherence
- Drug interactions
- Problems with drug absorption
- HIV drug resistance
How often must one evaluate viral load?
The testing of the viral load is done to assess several factors-
- Treatment response
- Adherence
- Clinical circumstances
Does an increase in viral load always mean resistance to treatment?
No, a temporary increase does not mean resistance.
A persistent elevation in the viral load must be evaluated along with other factors to determine resistance.