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HIV/AIDS
Long-term data do not support raltegravir as second-line therapy
A second-line HIV regimen containing the integrase inhibitor raltegravir failed to meet its primary endpoint of non-inferiority against standard second-line treatment with nucleoside reverse-transcriptase...
HIV patients at greater risk of both heart and kidney disease
Australian research shows HIV patients at high risk for a heart attack or stroke are also at substantially greater risk for chronic kidney disease...
European AIDS Clinical Society strengthens HPV vaccination advice
The European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) has recommended HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccination for everyone living with HIV aged under 26 and all men who...
Study supports raltegravir once daily for first-line therapy
A once-daily, 1200-mg dose of raltegravir was equally effective as the standard twice-daily, 400-mg dose for treatment of HIV-1, a study has found.
In a...
U=U taking off in 2017
The fact that people infected with HIV who are virally suppressed cannot sexually transmit the virus to others is now accepted in the HIV/Aids...
Programmes to prevent HIV/ hepatitis spread among PWID inadequate
The provision of programmes to prevent the spread of HIV and hepatitis among people who inject drugs (PWID) is inadequate in many countries around...
HIV: The benefits of INH prophylaxis for TB are confirmed
Long-term follow-up in the ANRS TEMPRANO trial confirms that tuberculosis chemoprophylaxis in HIV-infected people is more than ever relevant in resource-limited countries. This prophylactic...
Protease inhibitor regimen maintains viral suppression for a year
People who switched from a multi-pill antiretroviral regimen to the first one-pill, once-daily regimen that includes a protease inhibitor maintained undetectable viral load for...
ART in Africa bridges health gap between those with, without HIV
The expansion of ART for HIV infection has helped reduce disparities in health-related quality of life between HIV-positive and HIV-negative individuals in Zambia and...
Switch to single-tablet regimen containing darunavir is safe, effective
Switching to a once-daily, darunavir-based HIV regimen was non-inferior to continuing treatment with a boosted protease inhibitor plus emtricitabine and Viread, according to 48-week...
Switching from boosted protease inhibitor
Adults switching to bictegravir/alafenamide from a boosted protease inhibitor maintained high rates of virologic suppression without resistance, a phase-3 study found.
Gilead Sciences has announced...
Recovery of renal function after switching from TDF
For HIV-infected patients with declining renal function who are receiving a regimen containing tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), switching to other antiretroviral agents (ARVs) results...
Strong indication for statin-based therapy in HIV+ patients
Despite having a strong indication for statin-based therapy according to the 2013 ACA/AHA blood cholesterol guidelines, two-thirds of HIV+ patients were not prescribed appropriate...
Abacavir ART not increasing risk of myocardial infarction or CVD
Patients who receive abacavir-containing antiretroviral therapy (ART) for HIV do not have an increased risk for myocardial infarction (MI) or coronary artery disease (CAD),...
Observed rate of viral failure in two regimens
"The observed rate of viral failure during follow-up was lower among people living with HIV initiating dolutegravir-based vs darunavir-based regimens in routine clinical care...
Regimen change associated with weight gain
According to results of a study presented at IDWeek 2017, an increase in body weight is common in HIV patients who are switched from...
Improved renal and bone safety from FTC/TAF regimen in black adults
Among HIV-infected, virologically suppressed black adults, emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (FTC/TAF) showed improvements in renal and bone safety compared to emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (FTC/TDF), according to...
Critical to screen for depression in people with HIV in SSA
Since depression can have deleterious consequences on the lives of people liviing with HIV/AIDS, it is critical to encourage its screening and management, integrating...
Impact of behavioural factors on health and survival of HIV-HCV patients
Novel five-year study highlights importance of behaviours such as coffee drinking and not smoking on health and survival of HIV and HCV infected patients,...
HIV rates for the over-50s climbing in Europe
HIV rates are climbing in the over-50s in the UK and across Europe, while the rate of new infections among younger people is dropping,...
Engineered antibody that attacks HIV strains an 'exciting breakthrough'
Scientists have engineered an antibody that attacks 99% of HIV strains and can prevent infection in primates, reports BBC News.
Scientists from Sanofi, the Vaccine...
Once daily fixed dose of ART safe in children
A once-daily fixed-dose coformulation of elvitegravir, cobicistat, emtricitabine, and tenofovir alafenamide was safe and efficacious in children with HIV, found a study led by...
Period when MSM are potentially infectious is falling significantly
The period during which HIV-positive men who have sex with men (MSM) are potentially infectious fell significantly between 2007 and 2016, investigators from Australia...
BHIVA challenges recommendation on ART for HIV+ pregnant women
The British HIV Association (BHIVA) has taken issue with a BMJ article regarding the PROMISE trial that led to a recommendation on the use...
Smokers with HIV 10x more likely to die from lung cancer
People living with HIV who adhere to antiretroviral therapy but smoke cigarettes are around 10 times more likely to die from lung cancer than...
Treating chronic pain in HIV patients
Because ongoing pain is a significant problem that affects 39% to 85% of people living with HIV, everyone with the infection should be assessed...
Factors in failing to start ART
With the goal of preventing HIV transmission and disease progression, US federal guidelines since early 2012 have suggested everyone who tests HIV positive should...
Study looks at US youth transitioning to adult HIV care
While a number of qualitative studies have been completed looking at the specific challenges relating to HIV care transition for young people living with...
New recommendations on ARVs for pregnant women living with HIV
New recommendations on antiretroviral drugs for pregnant women living with HIV can help women make more informed choices about benefits and harms, says...
Dolutegravir may link to serious depression
Severe depression may be a side-effect of treatment with the anti-HIV drug dolutegravir, according to clinicians from The Netherlands , who report two cases of...
Morning drug-taking helps to reduce insomnia
Italian doctors say that sleeplessness after taking the integrase inhibitor dolutegravir occurred much less often when their patients took their dose of the drug...
Better retention for HIV patients who have six-month clinic visits
Patients receiving care for HIV who were scheduled for clinic visits every six months were less likely to show up late, miss visits, have...
Electronic update of HIV prevention and treatment guidelines
The Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Opportunistic Infections in HIV Infected Adults and Adolescents document have been published in an electronic format...
Abstinence-only-until-marriage programmes found ineffective
Two scientific review papers show that abstinence-only-until-marriage programmes and policies in the US are ineffective as they do not delay sexual initiation or reduce...
Intervention with HIV+ parents increases disclosure to children
Ground breaking research led by a team of SA scientists proves that, given the right support, HIV-positive parents will disclose their status to...
Maraviroc for HIV prevention safe and well tolerated in women
Pre-exposure prophylaxis regimens containing maraviroc were safe and well-tolerated in women at risk for HIV infection compared with emtricitabine-tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, according to results...
Combination of darunavir/ritonavir and lamivudine is as efficacious as triple therapy
Recent findings demonstrated that dual therapy with darunavir/ritonavir and lamivudine was non-inferior to triple therapy with darunavir/ritonavir plus tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and emtricitabine or...
Vit D supplementation improves lumbar spine bone mineral density
Monthly doses of vitamin D increased bone density in HIV-infected youth who were receiving Viread as part of their combination antiretroviral therapy, or cART,...
HIV drug resistance in more than half of young African children
Approximately 54% of young children with HIV surveyed in Africa had resistance to one or more antiretroviral drugs, an analysis found.
The prevalence of HIV...
Peripheral artery disease more common with lower CD4 counts
Peripheral artery disease occurs more frequently in people with HIV who have CD4 cell counts below 500, regardless of whether they smoke or have...