Sunday, January 30, 2011

HIV Prophylaxis; CDC Offers Guidance for Use of Emtricitabine plus Tenofovir

The CDC has published interim guidelines for HIV prophylaxis using the combination drug tenofovir plus emtricitabine (marketed as Truvada) in men who have sex with men.
The guidelines, published in MMWR, follow a New England Journal of Medicine study that showed a 44% reduced rate of HIV acquisition in men who took the drug.

While final guidelines on pre-exposure prophylaxis are being developed over the next several months, the agency recommends the following:
Use of Truvada as a prophylactic measure should be limited to men who have sex with men.
Eligible patients should be at "substantial, ongoing, high risk" for HIV infection and should be screened for hepatitis B and other sexually transmitted infections.

Physicians should prescribe one tablet of Truvada daily with no more than a 90-day supply.
Risk-reduction counseling, condoms, and medication adherence counseling should also be provided.
The document also provides advice on patient follow-up while the drug is being taken and how to discontinue the drug.

LINK(S):
MMWR article (Free)
Physician's First Watch coverage of NEJM trial (Free)
Published in
Physician's First Watch
.
January 28, 2011

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