To reduce the number of cells infected with HIV and the risk of complications, patients should be prescribed retroantiviral therapy as early as possible. The faster the medication is taken, the more the treatment will increase the vital prognosis of patients.
Inserm researchers carried out a study with 327 patients with HIV to understand the impact of the precocity of HAART on the development of the virus and the risks of complications.
The results of the study reveal that the faster the establishment of antiretroviral treatment after infection, the more effective it will be in the short and medium term. Indeed, if the treatment is taken less than three months after infection, the viral reservoir will be weaker, in the short, medium and long term.
“Combined antiretroviral therapy effectively prevents the virus from replicating, but it does not dislodge the virus from host cells. Indeed, HIV persists in the body, integrated into the DNA of certain cells, ”explains Laurence Meyer, HIV epidemiologist and co-author of the study. “It can be maintained in a latent form for years, especially in CD4 T lymphocytes, then start to proliferate again, for example when treatment is interrupted. The size of this viral reservoir is correlated with the risk of complications and the prognosis of the disease: it is therefore important to reduce it as much as possible, ”recalls the researcher.
The conclusions of this study confirm the interest of starting at HAART earlier to limit the risk of complications. “This result is very important. The smaller the reservoir, the more we can expect less systemic inflammation and lower risk of complications. This is what we are in the process of verifying, ”concludes Laurence Meyer.
Earlier diagnosis for better care
For faster and more effective treatment, it is necessary that the diagnosis be made as soon as possible after contamination. However, the National Institute for Public Health Surveillance (INVS) estimates that 30,000 to 40,000 people in France are unaware that they are seropositive.
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