The clinical significance of viral fitness.
Increasing evidence indicates that antiretroviral drug resistance is associated with impaired viral fitness and that this impairment can translate, at least transiently, into a virological and immunological benefit. The optimal strategies for exploiting the fitness cost associated with drug resistance remain to be determined. For highly drug-experienced patients receiving salvage therapy with a detectable viral load and with limited or no remaining drug options, continuing the current regimen may be a useful strategy to delay disease progression. In this context, it remains controversial whether it is preferable to continue failing therapy with nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, protease inhibitors or both.
Geretti
Anna Maria
AM
Department of Virology, Royal Free Hospital, Pond Street, London NW3 2QG, UK.
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D024882:Drug Resistance, Viral / Q000235:genetics*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000821:virology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity* / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D009154:Mutation; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019562:Viral Load
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors