Fosamprenavir side-effects
The makers of the drug also cautioned that fosamprenavir can cause increases in blood lipids and that these should be monitored before a person starts taking the drug.
Results from a French study showed that treatment with fosamprenavir increased the risk of heart attack by 50%.
Kaletra (lopinavir/ritonavir) is another protease inhibitor that has been associated with an increased risk of heart attack.
Updated US HIV treatment guidelines were recently published. Now neither fosamprenavir nor Kaletra are preferred choices in the US for people starting HIV treatment for the first time.
Similarly in the UK, these are not preferred choices but they are among the range of drugs approved for first-line use in the UK. Your regular HIV care will include tests to monitor your blood lipids and risk of heart attack. If you are concerned about this warning, then it makes good sense to talk to your HIV doctor.
For more information on possible side-effects of HIV treatment, you may find the NAM booklet Side-effects helpful. It is available free to people with HIV in the UK, as well as on our website and through HIV clinics and organisations in the UK.Changing medical needs of people with HIV
People with HIV are having more outpatient appointments, Danish research shows.
Thanks to antiretroviral treatment, people with HIV are living longer and healthier lives.
Danish researchers conducted a study to see how this was affecting use of healthcare services.
They found that the number of people with HIV in Denmark increased by 61% between 1995 and 2007. The average age of people with HIV increased significantly – there was a 600% increase in the number of patients aged between 50 and 60.
Because HIV treatment meant that people were developing fewer serious illnesses, there was a 43% fall in the number of inpatient admissions during the period of the study.
However, demand for outpatient services increased by over 100%.
The researchers found that there were increases in both hospital admissions and outpatient appointments because of cardiovascular disease. They think that this is because people with HIV are living into older age and developing the diseases generally associated with ageing.
The March edition of HIV Treatment Update included a feature called Future daze, on how medical care for HIV might work in the future. This edition can be downloaded as a PDF from the online archive. HIV Treatment Update is available free to people living with HIV, or subscriptions can be bought from our online bookshop.
GPs
Only 50% of people with HIV in the UK have disclosed their status to their GP.
It’s recommended that everyone with HIV should have a GP. This is because GPs can look after day-to-day healthcare needs and also provide services that are not routinely available from HIV clinics. Examples include home visits and vaccinations for seasonal and swine flu.
However, research conducted between 1995 and 2005 found that only 51% of people with HIV had disclosed to their GP.
Women with HIV had an average of five appointments at their GP’s surgery every year compared to an average of four for men.
Telling your GP that you are HIV-positive will help them have a full picture of your health to ensure you get the best possible care.
HIV treatment and erectile problems
Erectile dysfunction is defined as the inability to achieve or maintain an erection that is satisfactory for sexual intercourse.
The study showed that 52% of men had some form of erectile dysfunction ranging from mild to severe.
The main factors associated with erectile problems were older age and treatment with protease inhibitors.
However, they also found that all the men reporting erectile dysfunction had low levels of the male hormone testosterone. They recommend that this finding should be investigated in further research.
Viagra (sildenafil) and similar drugs can provide a very effective treatment for erectile problems. But the researchers found that only 11% of men with this problem were taking this type of drug.
Erectile problems can not only lower quality of life, stress the researchers, but can also be an early warning sign of cardiovascular disease. They stress that it is important for doctors and researchers to monitor their patients for this problem and to try and find the causes.
Other research has found that stress, the effect of HIV itself, and drug and alcohol use can cause erectile dysfunction. It’s a good idea to talk to your doctor if you are experiencing sexual problems, so that the cause can be identified. Erectile dysfunction drugs can interact with anti-HIV drugs, so it is important that the prescribing doctor is aware of all the drugs you are taking.