Pharmacoeconomics of etravirine.
HIV infection, particularly multidrug-resistant HIV, continues to be a major societal and economic challenge worldwide. Etravirine, a new (US FDA approved in 2008) non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, has been shown to be very effective in treating patients who have failed prior antiretroviral therapy. Clinical studies demonstrated that etravirine in combination with other antiretrovirals achieved superior levels of undetectable plasma HIV RNA and CD4 cell count increases that led to reductions in risk of death and development of AIDS-defining illnesses when compared with placebo. Etravirine was also shown to be generally well tolerated, with favorable CNS and psychiatric tolerability profiles. In addition, etravirine in combination with other antiretrovirals has been shown to improve quality of life and quality-adjusted life expectancy. Economic evaluations showed that the addition of etravirine to a regimen was associated with lower costs per person with an undetectable viral load and lower hospital-related costs compared with placebo.
School of Pharmacy, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA. peteful@msn.com
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Fullerton
Mary Jane
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Watson
David
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Anderson
James
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Witek
Silas C
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Martin
Joseph M
JM
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D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D017850:Economics, Pharmaceutical; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D009570:Nitriles; D011724:Pyridazines / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011743:Pyrimidines; D011788:Quality of Life; D019057:Quality-Adjusted Life Years; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D009570:Nitriles; D011724:Pyridazines; D011743:Pyrimidines; D012367:RNA, Viral; C451734:etravirine