Kaletra Monotherapy Controversy: AmfAR Publishes Overview

Summary: A study of medical records found that combining the antibiotic erythromycin with strong inhibitors of the liver enzyme CYP3A increased the risk of sudden death from cardiac causes -- probably by abnormally raising the blood levels of erythromycin.

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The November 2004 HIV AIDS Treatment Insider (published by the American Foundation for AIDS Research) has a short overview of the controversy around using Kaletra alone for HIV treatment for some patients -- mainly as an option for those who would otherwise have no antiretroviral treatment because they could not afford it.(1) A trial in Houston, Texas with 30 patients reported 48-week data at the big AIDS conference in Bangkok, Thailand in July.

The article, a fair presentation of both sides, also mentions other research plans for testing antiretroviral regimens with fewer than three drugs.

Note: The complete HIV AIDS Treatment Insider has two additional important articles: "Drug Pipelines May Flourish, But Not for HIV," by Kristen Kresge, and "Crunching the Numbers on Pharmaceuticals," by Elizabeth Paukstis. The complete issue can be read on the Web (or downloaded in PDF) at
http://web.amfar.org/treatment/HIV+/insidermenu.asp

References

(1) Monotherapy: An old strategy garners new interest, by Elizabeth Paukstis. HIV AIDS Treatment Insider; November 2004, volume 5, number 7,
http://www.amfar.org/cgi-bin/iowa/td/feature/record.html?record=133

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