Antiretroviral therapy (ART) was developed as a form of treatment for those diagnosed with retroviruses such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Designed to slow and suppress the spread of retrovirus in the system, the therapy mixes multiple prescription drugs to effectively combat the levels of the present disease and increase the health and lifespan of the infected individual.
HIV and AIDS
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HIV can fatally weaken the immune system and ultimately lead to AIDS. HIV can be spread through bodily secretions like semen, infected blood and mucus membranes.
AIDS is the final stage of the HIV virus, according to the CDC. Once the immune system is severely weakened, the body is susceptible to many infections and diseases like cancer. AIDS can be diagnosed through the counting of T-cells and the number of infections or diseases an individual has.
Purpose
ART is by no means a cure for HIV or AIDS; however, it does work to suppress the multiplication of the HIV virus within the body, slow the evolution of the disease and lower incidence of viral resistance to drug treatment. Suppression of the virus to levels that are undetectable is possible with the proper course of treatment, which consists of combining at least three anti-HIV medications from a minimum of two classes of prescription drugs. Research has shown that in such cases, infected individuals become less infectious and therefore less able to sexually transmit the virus to another person, their immune system function is increased overall and their lifespan is positively affected.
Medications
Using an anti-HIV medication mixture assists in staving off drug resistance (immune system tolerance of a medication so that it becomes ineffective with use) and works more aggressively to attack the disease progression. There are three classes of drugs used in ART, each of which works against the virus in a different manner than the others. Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) prevent HIV genes from turning into DNA; non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors do the same as NRTIs in a different way. Protease inhibitors stop the maturation and creation of new virus in the system.
Guidelines
The World Health Organization revised guidelines for access to ART for adults and children in 2006. These laid out standards and practices related to the treatment, including how it should be prescribed and in what circumstances. It was recommended that those with AIDS, those with symptomatic HIV and those who are asymptomatic yet very likely to adhere to the treatment protocol be presented with the positive and negative aspects of the ART and offered the choice to undergo treatment. The protocol calls for a working partnership between clinician and patient, weighing factors such as lifestyle and possible pregnancy, pre-existing conditions to take into account and which combinations of drugs might work more effectively for the individual.
Risks
Though antiretroviral therapy is an effective method of treatment and many individuals have experienced restoration of quality of life, depletion of system viral load and, in some cases, had their life saved by the therapy, it is not without marked risk. Long term use of ART can lead to hypertension, insulin resistance, dysfunction in the fat cells, liver and lymphocytes, forms of drug toxicity and many other symptoms of illness and poor health in the form of direct side effects from the medications used. Skin rash, lactic acidosis, osteoporosis, hyperlipidemia, lypodystrophy and hepatotoxicity are just some of the known side effects of ART medications.
