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Side Effects of HIV Therapy

The methods of treatment for HIV/AIDS are numerous, depending on how the virus has progressed in one's body. Different antiretroviral drugs have different side effects on different people, and it's important to know what you may experience depending on the drug regiment your doctor recommends.

  1. Timeline

    • When an HIV patient first starts ARV therapy, he can expect to experience a variety of side effects in the first four to six weeks after starting the medication regimen. This is the typical timeframe for the body to get used to the drug.

    Specific Drugs

    • With nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), side effects often include fever, myalgia, malaise, nausea, vomiting, anorexia, rash, headache and diarrhea, as well as pancreatitis, peripheral neuropathy, insomnia, dry mouth, peripheral neuropathy, renal insufficiency and anemia. NRTIs include Abacavir, Didanosine, Emtricitabine, Lamivudine, Stavudine, Tenofovir and Zidovudine. Non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) have side effects, such as fatigue, nausea, diarrhea, rash, hepatitis, confision, hyperlipidemia and elevations in liver function tests. NNRTIs include Delavirdine, Efavirenz, Etravirine and Nevirapine among others. Protease inhibitors (PIs) are accompanied by diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, rash, jaundice, elevations in liver function tests, dry skin, insomnia, taste perversion, fatigue, numbness, headache and oral ulcerations. PIs include Amprenavir, Atazanavir, Darunavir, Fosamprenavir, Indinavir, Lopinavir, Nelfinavir, Ritonavir, Saquinavir and Tipranavir. Finally, integrase inhibitors, like Raltegravir, can cause nausea, diarrhea, flatulence, headache, dizziness, rash, fatigue and muscle pain.

    Gender Differences

    • HIV-positive women tend to experience certain side effects of drug regimens more than their male counterparts due to smaller body size, metabolism and hormone levels. With Norvir, a protease inhibitor, for example, nausea and vomiting are experienced more than men, though diarrhea is experienced less. Lipodystrophy, or body shape changes, also tend to effect women more, with fat gain seen in the breasts and stomach. Women taking NNRTIs, like Viramune and Sustiva, experience more severe rashes than men as well. It's imperative to notify your doctor if you develop a rash, since it is possible to develop a life-threatening condition called Stevens-Johnson syndrome.
      Women are at a higher risk for the development of anemia than men, a shortage of red blood cells that can develop when on certain HIV medications. Menstrual irregularities are possible for women, leading to anemia in certain cases when bleeding becomes excessive. Osteoporosis or osteopenia, both bone diseases, have been seen in HIV-positive women more than men, so it's important to have your bone density checked regularly, and to get enough calcium and vitamin D in your diet. The buildup of lactic acid in the blood, lactic acidosis, tends to develop more in women on NRTIs.

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