People in their fifties with HIV are considered older adults, but they appear not to be a homogeneous group.
To evaluate the differences among older adults with HIV according to their chronological ...age and the year of HIV diagnosis.
Cross-sectional study of the FUNCFRAIL cohort. Patients 50 or over with HIV were included and were stratified by both chronological age and the year of HIV diagnosis: before 1996 (long-term HIV survivors LTHS) and after 1996. We recorded sociodemographic data, HIV-related factors, comorbidities, frailty, physical function, other geriatric syndromes, and quality of life (QOL).
We evaluated 801 patients. Of these, 24.7% were women, 47.0% were LTHS, and 14.7% were 65 or over. Of the 65 or over patients, 73% were diagnosed after 1996. Higher rates of comorbidities among LTHS were found, being the more prevalent: COPD, history of cancer, osteoarthritis, depression, and other psychiatric disorders while the more prevalent among the 65 or over patients were: hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, cancer, and osteoarthritis. LTHS showed a significantly worse QOL. There were no differences by the year of HIV diagnosis regarding frailty and functional impairment (SPPB <10) but they were more than twice as prevalent in the 65 or over patients compared to the other chronological age groups.
A LTHS and a 65 or over person are both "older adults with HIV," but their characteristics and requirements differ markedly. It is mandatory to design specific approaches focused on the real needs of the different profiles.
Prevalence of transmitted drug resistance (pTDR) to antiretroviral drugs in Spain (2007–2012) was estimated using the CoRIS cohort, adjusting its territorial distribution and transmission route to ...the reference population from the Spanish Information System on New human immunodeficiency virus diagnoses. A total of 2702 patients from ten autonomous communities and with naive FASTA sequence within 6 months of human immunodeficiency virus diagnosis were selected. Weighted pTDR, estimated using the inverse probability of selection in the sample by autonomous communities and transmission group, was 8.12% (95% CI 6.44–9.80), not significantly different from unweighted pTDR. We illustrate how proportional weighting can maximize representativeness of cohort-based data, and its value to monitor pTDR at country level.
We characterized transmitted drug resistance to rilpivirine and the predicted efficacy of first-line rilpivirine-containing regimens in antiretroviral-naive Spanish patients. International Antiviral ...Society-USA mutations were detected in 138 of 2781 patients (4.9%), E138A (3.4%) being the most prevalent. Using the Stanford Algorithm, 121 patients (4.4%) showed low-level or intermediate resistance. No differences in the predicted efficacy of first-line non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor-based regimens were observed. As rilpivirine becomes more widely used in clinical practice, the evolution of its transmitted drug resistance will need to be monitored. In addition, the exact role of E138A singletons on rilpivirine activity as part of first-line regimens merits further evaluation.
Summary Objectives To analyze the impact of late presentation (LP) on overall mortality and causes of death and describe LP trends and risk factors (2004–2013). Methods Cox models and logistic ...regression were used to analyze data from a nation-wide cohort in Spain. LP is defined as being diagnosed when CD4 < 350 cells/ml or AIDS. Results Of 7165 new HIV diagnoses, 46.9% (CI95% :45.7–48.0) were LP, 240 patients died. First-year mortality was the highest (aHRLP.vs.nLP = 10.3CI95% :5.5–19.3); between 1 and 4 years post-diagnosis, aHRLP.vs.nLP = 1.9(1.2–3.0); and >4 years, aHRLP.vs.nLP = 1.5(0.7–3.1). First-year's main cause of death was HIV/AIDS (73%); and malignancies among those surviving >4 years (32%). HIV/AIDS-related deaths were more likely in LP (59.2% vs. 25.0%; p < 0.001). LP declined from 55.9% (2004–05) to 39.4% (2012–13), and reduced in 46.1% in men who have sex with men (MSM) and 37.6% in heterosexual men, but increased in 22.6% in heterosexual women. Factors associated with LP: sex (ORMEN.vs.WOMEN = 1.41.2–1.7); age (OR31–40.vs.<30 = 1.61.4–1.8, OR41–50.vs.<30 = 2.21.8–2.6, OR>50.vs.<30 = 3.62.9–4.4); behavior (ORInjectedDrugUse.vs.MSM = 2.82.0–3.8; ORHeterosexual.vs.MSM = 2.21.7–3.0); education (ORPrimaryEducation.vs.University = 1.51.1–2.0, ORLowerSecondary.vs.University = 1.31.1–1.5); and geographical origin (ORSub-Saharan.vs.Spain = 1.61.3–2.0, ORLatin-American.vs.Spain = 1.41.2–1.8). Conclusions LP is associated with higher mortality, especially short-term- and HIV/AIDS-related mortality. Mid-term-, but not long-term mortality, remained also higher in LP than nLP. LP decreased in MSM and heterosexual men, not in heterosexual women. The groups most affected by LP are low educated, non-Spanish and heterosexual women.
To evaluate the efficacy of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in 12 patients with AIDS-associated progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).
The diagnosis of PML was established by ...brain biopsy in six patients and by neuroimaging findings and PCR detection of JC virus in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in six patients. We also studied 13 consecutive AIDS patients with biopsy-proven PML cared for in the same institution before HAART was available. Eleven patients of the HAART group and eight patients of the control group received intravenous arabinoside cytosine cycles.
With HAART, the median decrease in the HIV viral load was 3.58 log10 copies/ml and the median increase in the CD4 cell count was 74x10(6)/l. The median survival time after PML diagnosis was 545 days in the HAART group and 60 days in the control group (P<0.001, log-rank test). In the HAART group, the neurological deficits improved substantially in six patients and stabilized in six patients. Eleven patients underwent follow-up cranial computed tomography or magnetic resonance scan that showed improvement of PML lesions in 10 patients and stabilization in one patient. Follow-up CSF analysis showed clearance of JC virus in six out of seven patients who had an initial positive result.
This study shows that HAART may increase the survival, clinical status and radiological features of AIDS patients with PML. Clearance of JC virus from CSF has been found, suggesting that immune reconstitution can interrupt the JC virus lytic cycle.
We compared 48 week effectiveness and safety of first-line antiretroviral regimens.
We analysed HIV treatment-naive adults from the Cohort of the Spanish HIV/AIDS Research Network (CoRIS) starting ...the most commonly used antiretroviral regimens from 2014 to 2018. We used multivariable regression models to assess the impact of initial regimen on: (i) viral suppression (VS) (viral load <50 copies/mL); (ii) change in CD4 cell count; (iii) CD4/CD8 normalization (>0.4 and >1); (iv) CD4 percentage normalization (>29%); (v) multiple T-cell marker recovery (MTMR: CD4 > 500 cells/mm3 plus CD4 percentage >29% plus CD4/CD8 > 1); (vi) lipid, creatinine and transaminase changes; and (vii) discontinuations due to adverse events (AE).
Among 3945 individuals analysed, the most frequently prescribed regimens were ABC/3TC/DTG (34.0%), TAF/FTC/EVG/CBT (17.2%), TDF/FTC + DTG (11.9%), TDF/FTC/EVG/CBT (11.7%), TDF/FTC/RPV (11.5%), TDF/FTC + bDRV (8.3%) and TDF/FTC + RAL (5.3%). At 48 weeks, 89.7% of individuals achieved VS with no significant differences by initial regimen. CD4 mean increase was 257.8 (249.3; 266.2) cells/mm3, and it was lower with TAF/FTC/EVG/CBT and TDF/FTC/RPV compared with ABC/3TC/DTG. CD4 percentage normalization was less likely with TAF/FTC/EVG/CBT, and MTMR was less likely with TAF/FTC/EVG/CBT and TDF/FTC + RAL. The proportion of discontinuations due to AE was higher with TDF/FTC + bDRV (9.7%), followed by TDF/FTC/EVG/CBT (9.5%) and TDF/FTC + DTG (7.9%). Compared with ABC/3TC/DTG, cholesterol and LDL mean increases were higher with TAF/FTC/EVG/CBT and lower with TDF/FTC + DTG, TDF/FTC/RPV and TDF/FTC + RAL. Higher mean increases in triglycerides were significantly associated with TAF/FTC/EVG/CBT. Regimens containing DTG showed higher creatinine increases.
The significantly greater immunological response and safety of some combinations may be useful for making decisions when initiating treatment.
Abstract
Objectives
To assess the attitudes and opinions about generic antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) and single-tablet regimen (STR) de-simplification among physicians prescribing HIV treatment in the ...cohort of the Spanish HIV/AIDS Research Network (CoRIS).
Methods
An online questionnaire with 27 structured questions was sent to all physicians (n=199) who prescribed ARVs among the 45 centres participating in the cohort.
Results
A total of 169 (84.9%) physicians answered the questionnaire. Only 4.1% of the physicians would never prescribe generic ARVs, but 53.3% would not prescribe them if the number of pills per day increased and 89.3% would not prescribe them if the number of doses per day increased. However, 84.0% of the physicians agreed to prescribe generic ARVs if doing so would decrease costs for the public healthcare system. The percentages of physicians stating that generic ARVs (compared with branded ones) would be associated with worse adherence, more adverse effects or more probability of virological failure, provided that the number of pills and doses per day would not change, were low: 0.6%, 7.7% and 3.6%, respectively. However, these percentages were much higher if the generic ARV entailed breaking an STR: 63.9%, 18.9% and 42.0%, respectively. Most physicians stated that they needed more information about the effectiveness and safety of generic ARVs and the price difference compared with their branded equivalents.
Conclusions
Although most physicians were confident about prescribing generic ARVs, the majority had strong concerns about de-simplifying STR, and they also needed more information about generic drugs.
We aimed to describe the most frequently prescribed initial antiretroviral therapy (ART) regimens in recent years in HIV-positive persons in the Cohort of the Spanish HIV/AIDS Research Network ...(CoRIS) and to investigate factors associated with the choice of each regimen.
We analyzed initial ART regimens prescribed in adults participating in CoRIS from 2014 to 2017. Only regimens prescribed in >5% of patients were considered. We used multivariable multinomial regression to estimate Relative Risk Ratios (RRRs) for the association between sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and the choice of the initial regimen.
Among 2874 participants, abacavir(ABC)/lamivudine(3TC)/dolutegavir(DTG) was the most frequently prescribed regimen (32.1%), followed by tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF)/emtricitabine (FTC)/elvitegravir(EVG)/cobicistat(COBI) (14.9%), TDF/FTC/rilpivirine (RPV) (14.0%), tenofovir alafenamide (TAF)/FTC/EVG/COBI (13.7%), TDF/FTC+DTG (10.0%), TDF/FTC+darunavir/ritonavir or darunavir/cobicistat (bDRV) (9.8%) and TDF/FTC+raltegravir (RAL) (5.6%). Compared with ABC/3TC/DTG, starting TDF/FTC/RPV was less likely in patients with CD4<200 cells/μL and HIV-RNA>100.000 copies/mL. TDF/FTC+DTG was more frequent in those with CD4<200 cells/μL and HIV-RNA>100.000 copies/mL. TDF/FTC+RAL and TDF/FTC+bDRV were also more frequent among patients with CD4<200 cells//μL and with transmission categories other than men who have sex with men. Compared with ABC/3TC/DTG, the prescription of other initial ART regimens decreased from 2014-2015 to 2016-2017 with the exception of TDF/FTC+DTG. Differences in the choice of the initial ART regimen were observed by hospitals' location.
The choice of initial ART regimens is consistent with Spanish guidelines' recommendations, but is also clearly influenced by physician's perception based on patient's clinical and sociodemographic variables and by the prescribing hospital location.
The virus-specific CD8+ T cell responses of 21 HIV-infected patients were studied including a unique cohort of long-term nonprogressors with low levels of plasma viral RNA and strong proliferative ...responses to HIV Ags. HIV-specific CD8+ T cell responses were studied by a combination of standard cytotoxic T cell (CTL) assays, MHC tetramers, and TCR repertoire analysis. The frequencies of CD8+ T cells specific to the majority of HIV gene products were measured by flow cytometric detection of intracellular IFN-gamma in response to HIV-vaccinia recombinant-infected autologous B cells. Very high frequencies (0.8-18.0%) of circulating CD8+ T cells were found to be HIV specific. High frequencies of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells were not limited to long-term nonprogressors with restriction of plasma virus. No correlation was found between the frequency of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells and levels of plasma viremia. In each case, the vast majority of cells (up to 17.2%) responded to gag-pol. Repertoire analysis showed these large numbers of Ag-specific cells were scattered throughout the repertoire and in the majority of cases not contained within large monoclonal expansions. These data demonstrate that high numbers of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells exist even in patients with high-level viremia and progressive disease. Further, they suggest that other qualitative parameters of the CD8+ T cell response may differentiate some patients with very low levels of plasma virus and nonprogressive disease.
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