Effectiveness of Protease Inhibitor Monotherapy versus Combination Antiretroviral Maintenance Therapy: A Meta-Analysis

2011

Effectiveness of Protease Inhibitor Monotherapy versus Combination Antiretroviral Therapy

Sample size: 1189 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Mathis Sandra, Khanlari Bettina, Pulido Federico, Schechter Mauro, Negredo Eugenia, Nelson Mark, Vernazza Pietro, Cahn Pedro, Meynard Jean-Luc, Arribas Jose, Bucher Heiner C.

Primary Institution: Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Hypothesis

Is protease inhibitor monotherapy effective and safe for virologically suppressed HIV-infected patients compared to combination antiretroviral therapy?

Conclusion

Switching from combination therapy to protease inhibitor monotherapy may lead to a lower chance of maintaining viral suppression in HIV-infected patients.

Supporting Evidence

Ten trials were included in the analysis, with a total of 1189 patients.
Patients on protease inhibitor monotherapy had a higher risk of virological failure compared to those on combination therapy.
Reintroduction of combination therapy led to viral suppression in 93% of patients who initially failed monotherapy.

Takeaway

This study looked at whether taking just one type of HIV medicine instead of a combination of medicines works as well. It found that sticking to the combination is usually better.

Methodology

The study systematically reviewed randomized controlled trials comparing protease inhibitor monotherapy to combination therapy in HIV patients who were virologically suppressed.