A Trial of Early Antiretrovirals and Isoniazid Preventive Therapy in Africa.

BACKGROUND: In sub-Saharan Africa, the burden of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated tuberculosis is high. We conducted a trial with a 2-by-2 factorial design to assess the benefits of early antiretroviral therapy (ART), 6-month isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT), or both among HIV-infected adults with high CD4+ cell counts in Ivory Coast. METHODS: We included participants who had HIV type 1 infection and a CD4+ count of less than 800 cells per cubic millimeter and who met no criteria for starting ART according to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups: deferred ART (ART initiation according to WHO criteria), deferred ART plus IPT, early ART (immediate ART initiation), or early ART plus IPT. The primary end point was a composite of diseases included in the case definition of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), non-AIDS-defining cancer, non-AIDS-defining invasive bacterial disease, or death from any cause at 30 months. We used Cox proportional models to compare outcomes between the deferred-ART and early-ART strategies and between the IPT and no-IPT strategies. RESULTS: A total of 2056 patients (41% with a baseline CD4+ count of ≥500 cells per cubic millimeter) were followed for 4757 patient-years. A total of 204 primary end-point events were observed (3.8 events per 100 person-years; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.3 to 4.4), including 68 in patients with a baseline CD4+ count of at least 500 cells per cubic millimeter (3.2 events per 100 person-years; 95% CI, 2.4 to 4.0). Tuberculosis and invasive bacterial diseases accounted for 42% and 27% of primary end-point events, respectively. The risk of death or severe HIV-related illness was lower with early ART than with deferred ART (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.41 to 0.76; adjusted hazard ratio among patients with a baseline CD4+ count of ≥500 cells per cubic millimeter, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.33 to 0.94) and lower with IPT than with no IPT (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.48 to 0.88; adjusted hazard ratio among patients with a baseline CD4+ count of ≥500 cells per cubic millimeter, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.36 to 1.01). The 30-month probability of grade 3 or 4 adverse events did not differ significantly among the strategies. CONCLUSIONS: In this African country, immediate ART and 6 months of IPT independently led to lower rates of severe illness than did deferred ART and no IPT, both overall and among patients with CD4+ counts of at least 500 cells per cubic millimeter. (Funded by the French National Agency for Research on AIDS and Viral Hepatitis; TEMPRANO ANRS 12136 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00495651.).

Early upper digestive tract side effects of zidovudine with tenofovir plus emtricitabine in West African adults with high CD4 counts.

INTRODUCTION: Tenofovir (TDF) with emtricitabine (FTC) and zidovudine (ZDV) is a recognized alternate first-line antiretroviral (ART) regimen for patients who cannot start treatment with non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs). Clinical studies comparing TDF+FTC+ZDV to other regimens are lacking. METHODS: Participants in a trial of early ART in Côte d'Ivoire (Temprano ANRS 12136) started treatment with TDF/FTC plus either efavirenz (EFV) or ZDV (HIV-1+2 dually infected patients and women refusing contraception or previously treated with nevirapine). We compared rates of upper digestive serious adverse events (sAEs) between TDF/FTC+EFV and TDF/FTC+ZDV patients during the first six months of treatment. sAEs were defined as either grade 3-4 AEs or persistent grade 1-2 AEs leading to drug discontinuation. RESULTS: A total of 197 patients (76% women, median CD4 count 395/mm(3)) started therapy with TDF/FTC, 126 with EFV and 71 with ZDV. During the first six months of ART, 94 patients had digestive AEs (nausea/vomiting) of any grade (EFV 36/126, 29%; ZDV 58/71, 82%, p<0.0001), including 20 sAEs (EFV 3/126, 5%; ZDV 17/71, 24%, p<0.0001). In-patients on TDF/FTC+ZDV with digestive AEs, the median time to the first symptom was two days (IQR: 1-4). Plasma ZDV (Cmax) distributions and pill ZDV dosages were normal. Patients with digestive AEs had higher haemoglobin levels and tended to have higher body mass indices and more frequent past histories of cotrimoxazole (CTX) prophylaxis. CONCLUSIONS: We observed an unexpectedly high rate of digestive sAEs in West African adults, mostly women, who started a 3-nuc ART with TDF/FTC+ZDV in Côte d'Ivoire. These adults were participating in a trial of early ART and had much higher CD4 counts than those who currently routinely start ART in sub-Saharan Africa. They all received CTX concomitantly with ZDV. We suggest that further early prescriptions of TDF+XTC+ZDV should be carefully monitored and that whenever possible, the rate of early upper digestive adverse events should be compared to that occurring in-patients taking other drug regimens. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: NCT00495651.