Monthly Injections Can Treat HIV As Good As Daily ARV Medicines.

Prof Dr,DRAM,HIV /AIDS,HEPATITIS ,SEX DISEASES & WEAKNESS expert,New Delhi,India, +917838059592

HIV is such a disease if it occurs then we have to take ARV medicines regularly everyday with combination of 2-4 pills either as single or multiple pills ,as treatment is for life so many people don't adherence to it or take it regularly so recurrence a and resistance is more. But now no need of taking HIV medicines as ARV pills daily as Monthly shot as injections is as safe for HIV treatment as pills. Getting a shot of medication to control HIV every month or two instead of having to take pills every day could transform the way the virus is kept at bay. New research suggests that injectable, long-acting antiretroviral therapy for HIV is as safe and effective as oral medications. The injection ? given every four or eight weeks ? includes the drugs cabotegravir and rilpivirine.? We have made considerable advances in the treatment of HIV over the last several decades,said study lead author Dr. David Margolis.But for many patients living with HIV, it still remains a challenge to take daily oral medication, either because they are unable to or they choose not to. So it is important to find alternatives. Nearly 37 million people around the world are living with HIV. Advances in treatment have led to improved survival and quality of life. Current treatment, however, requires taking medications every day throughout life. Poor compliance can result in treatment failure or drug-resistant mutations of the virus. Long-acting, injectable drugs might be a more convenient way of managing HIV, the researchers said. The report was published online in the journal The Lancet.In the first 20 weeks of this trial, Margolis and his colleagues gave 309 patients with HIV who had never been on antiretroviral therapy . daily oral doses of the antiretroviral drugs cabotegravir and abacavir-lamivudine.This first step served to suppress the virus and test how well patients tolerated the drugs before moving on to injections. In all, 286 patients were included in the balance of the study. The patients were randomly assigned to injections of cabotegravir plus rilpivirine every four or eight weeks, or to daily oral drugs. After 32 weeks, HIV remained suppressed in 91 percent of those taking the drugs orally, in 94 percent of those receiving monthly injections and in 95 percent of patients receiving injections every two months, the researchers found. At 96 weeks, viral suppression was maintained in 84 percent of patients taking oral medication, 87 percent of those receiving monthly injections and in 94 percent of those receiving injections every other month. The most common side effects were pain at the site of the injection.

Most reactions were mild or moderate and lasted an average of three days. Other side effects included symptoms of a common cold, diarrhea and headache, which were similar in all three groups. Margolis said phase 3 trials are under way to test the effects of monthly injections in a larger number of patients.After this FDA will order it to use popularly in USA. Rowena Johnston, vice president and director of research at amfAR . The Foundation for AIDS Research, said, ?Anything that improves adherence or taking medication regularly without failure and therefore the treatment outcomes, of people living with HIV is most good.