Lipid Changes in Virologically Suppressed HIV-Infected Patients Switching from any Antiretroviral Therapy to the Emtricitabine/Rilpivirine/Tenofovir Single Tablet

Abstract

We carried out a retrospective, multicenter study of a cohort of 298 asymptomatic HIV-infected patients who switched from a regimen based on 2 nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors + protease inhibitor (PI)/nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor or ritonavir-boosted PI monotherapy to emtricitabine/rilpivirine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (FTC/RPV/TDF) to analyze lipid changes. At 24 weeks, 284 (95.3%) patients were still taking the same regimen, maintaining similar CD4 counts as at baseline (651 versus 672 cells/mm3, P =.08), and 98.9% of them with an undetectable viral load. Eight of the other 14 patients were lost to follow up and 6 (2.0%) ceased the new regimen: 3 due to adverse effects, 2 due to virologic failure, and 1 due to abandonment. The mean levels of fasting total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and triglycerides fell at 12 and 24 weeks, with no changes detected in the TC to HDL-C ratio.