Is Immune Reconstitution As Good the Second Time Around?

In the majority of patients studied, resuming ART after treatment interruption resulted in good virologic control and early CD4-cell response, although CD4-cell increases were not as robust as during initial therapy.

The SMART study has demonstrated unequivocally that treatment interruptions result in increased HIV- and non–HIV-associated morbidity and mortality (AIDS Clin Care Nov 29 2006). However, many patients still choose to interrupt therapy for one reason or another. Can these patients expect to achieve the same level of immune reconstitution during treatment resumption that they did the first time around? To answer this question, investigators evaluated data from CASCADE, an international collaboration of 23 cohorts involving more than 17,000 patients with known dates of seroconversion. This particular analysis included 216 patients who interrupted their antiretroviral regimens after ≥3 months of therapy and then resumed treatment (96 with a new…

Reviewing 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

Is Immune Reconstitution As Good the Second Time Around?

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Reviewing Author