New Guidelines Stress Early HIV Treatment

The International AIDS Society–USA is urging clinicians to treat patients when their CD4 counts drop to 500 cells/mm³ or lower — and to consider treatment even at higher CD4-cell counts.

In late 2009, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a moderate-to-strong recommendation for initiation of antiretroviral therapy in asymptomatic HIV-infected individuals with CD4 counts between 350 and 500 cells/mm³ (JW AIDS Clin Care Dec 7 2009). Now, the International AIDS Society (IAS)–USA has issued an even stronger set of recommendations.

Not only does the IAS–USA panel urge treatment for asymptomatic individuals with CD4 counts ≤500 cells/mm³, but they also recommend that treatment be considered for a broad swath of patients with even higher CD4-cell counts. Among those in the latter group are people with end-organ disease whose prognosis appears to be worsened by concomitant HIV infection — for example, those with ca…

Reviewing Author

Abigail Zuger, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Abigail Zuger, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

New Guidelines Stress Early HIV Treatment

Topics

Reviewing Author