Efficacy of Second Line Anti-retroviral Therapy among HIV/AIDS Patients in South India: A Prospective Observational Study

International Journal of Pharmacology and Clinical Sciences, 2016, 5, 3, 73-76.
DOI: 10.5530/ijpcs.5.3.2
Published: September 2016
Type: Original Article
Authors: Naveen Pokala, Maulik Patel
Author(s) affiliations:

Naveen Pokala1, Maulik Patel2

1Department of Pharmacology, Mamata Medical College, Khammam Telangana, India.

2Department of Pharmacology, Government Medical College, Bhavnagar, Gujarat, India.

Abstract

Background: Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Because of treatment failure with first line ART, roughly 4% of total patients on ART are on second line therapy. Second line ART is being instituted in 10 Centers of Excellence in India, Gandhi hospital being one of them in South India. Objective: To detect efficacy of second line Anti-Retroviral therapy in HIV/AIDS patients. Methods: This prospective and observational study of 20 months was done in a South Indian tertiary hospital. HIV/AIDS patients receiving second line Anti-Retroviral therapy (ART) due to failure of first line drugs were assessed for viral load and CD4 count before and after therapy and analyzed the same by Repeated Measures ANOVA followed by post hoc analysis by Dunnet’s multiple comparison test, respectively. Results: A total of one hundred and sixteen patients received second line ART. Mean viral load was 231280 ± 50913 copies per milliliter and mean CD4 count was 75.03 ± 10.69 cells per cubic millimeter before treatment. After initiation of second line ART, viral load reduced significantly to 1846 ± 621.4 (p<0.001) and 260.4 ± 183.7 (p<0.001) after six and twelve months of treatment, respectively, and CD4 count increased significantly to 181.8 ± 14.34 (p<0.001) and 235.7 ± 14.56 (p<0.001) after six and twelve months of treatment, respectively. Conclusion: Second line ART regimens are efficacious as they improved CD4 counts and reduced viral load significantly.

Keywords: CD4 counts, HIV/AIDS, Second line anti-retroviral, Viral load


View: DOWNLOAD PDF