Efficacy evaluation of antiretroviral drug combinations for hiv-1 treatment by using the fuzzy promethee

Abstract

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) causes disease by damaging the immune system. If treatment is not initiated, the immune system collapses and this leads to Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). The drugs used in the treatment of HIV infection slow or stop the damage caused by the virus to the immune system. In this study, we analyzed the treatment options of HIV since there are many antiretroviral drug combinations available for the treatment and each combination has different properties. The variety of different combinations can cause confusion for physicians in practice. Based on this aim, we proposed the fuzzy PROMETHEE technique, a multi-criteria decision making technique based on mutual comparison of the options. The most common antiretroviral drug combinations used in the HIV treatment were evaluated and compared corresponding to their parameters by the PROMETHEE technique. According to our results, integrase-based inhibitor drug combinations were predominantly preferred. BIC + TAF/FTC (bictegravir + tenofoviralafenamide/ emtricitabine) outranked the other antiretroviral drug combinations with a net flow of 0.0437, followed by DTG + ABC/3TC (dolutegravir + abacavir/ lamivudine) then DTG + TAF/FTC (dolutegravir + tenofoviralafenamide/ emtricitabine). The results obtained with the application of decision-making theories on these option treatment methods will provide significant information for relevant patients, HIV treatment specialists and drug-makers.