Abacavir Turmoil

Both the safety and efficacy of this NRTI were drawn into question in 2008.

Abacavir was approved in 1998, but 2008 was widely expected to be the drug’s best year yet. Simon Mallal had recently presented data showing that HLA-B5701 testing could predict hypersensitivity reactions, the major obstacle to widespread abacavir use, with previously unimaginable accuracy (AIDS Clin Care Sep 10 2007). Treatment guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) had elevated the fixed-dose abacavir/3TC combination to preferred status, and sales were increasing accordingly. Then the turmoil started.

In February 2008, investigators from the DAD study reported that recent abacavir use might double the risk for heart attack in HIV-infected people (AIDS Clin Care Mar 10 2008). Additional analyses confirmed th…

Author

Helmut Albrecht, MD

Disclosures

Grant / Research supportHealth Resources and Services Administration; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Leadership positions in professional societiesColumbia Medical Society; South Carolina Infectious Diseases Society

Helmut Albrecht, MD

Disclosures

Grant / Research supportHealth Resources and Services Administration; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Leadership positions in professional societiesColumbia Medical Society; South Carolina Infectious Diseases Society

Abacavir Turmoil

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