Could Early and Continuous HIV Therapy Achieve Eradication?

The decay rate of the HIV reservoir in patients treated early in infection raises the question of whether eradication is possible with prolonged continuous therapy.

Eradication of HIV infection has not been possible, even with potent combination antiretroviral therapy (ART), because the virus persists in resting CD4 cells and other viral reservoirs. Estimates of the half-life of such viral reservoirs vary widely, but most of the relevant studies have involved patients who initiated ART during chronic infection.

Investigators from the NIH and the University of Washington now report results from a longitudinal study of seven patients who had initiated ART 0.3–4.4 months (mean, 2.7 months) after the onset of symptoms of primary HIV infection. The patients had received ART for 31.1–54.0 months (mean, 40.4 months) and had achieved maximal viral suppression. Throughout therapy, the researchers performed seria…

Reviewing Author

Daniel J. Diekema, MD, MS

Could Early and Continuous HIV Therapy Achieve Eradication?

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Reviewing Author