title: Prediction of HIV-1 RNA suppression and its durability during treatment with zidovudine/lamivudine.
abstract: To predict the probability of long-term viral suppression during treatment with zidovudine and lamivudine, human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) RNA values were retrospectively pooled for 1083 patients from six randomized, double-blind clinical trials. All analyses of HIV-1 RNA were obtained using the Roche Amplicor assay or its earlier prototype. Time to loss of response was evaluated by Kaplan-Meier analysis; Cox proportional hazards models were used to assess the influence of baseline variables. Among 523 patients with < or = 6 months of prior zidovudine treatment, the probability of HIV-1 RNA suppression below 400 copies/ml at 48 weeks was 71% in those with baseline HIV-1 RNA < 5000 copies/ml, but only 14% in those with HIV-1 RNA between 50,000 and 200,000 copies/ml. Among 560 patients with > 6 months of prior zidovudine treatment, the rates of sustained viral suppression were lower, but also significantly associated with the baseline HIV-1 RNA. Multivariate analyses showed no independent effect of CD4 cell count, age, sex, race, or CDC disease stage on the probability of sustained HIV-1 RNA suppression. When patients with < or = 6 months of prior therapy were stratified based on the magnitude of HIV-1 RNA nadir achieved during treatment, those who reached a nadir of < 400 copies/ml retained this response for significantly longer time periods than the ones who only achieved partial viral suppression. In conclusion, baseline HIV-1 RNA levels and the duration of prior zidovudine therapy strongly predict the antiretroviral efficacy of zidovudine/lamivudine. The baseline parameters should influence the choice of the antiretroviral regimen.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland. infopr@usz.unizh.ch
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Opravil
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: DeMasi
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dawson
mesh_terms: D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000821:virology; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D019259:Lamivudine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015215:Zidovudine / Q000008:administration & dosage*
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D012367:RNA, Viral; D019259:Lamivudine; D015215:Zidovudine