When HIV was first identified in the early 1980s, there were few drugs to treat the virus and the opportunistic infections associated with it. Since then, a number of medications have been developed to treat both HIV/AIDS and opportunistic infections. For many people, including children, these treatments have extended and improved the quality of life. Scientists at the National Institutes of Health estimate that since 1989, anti-retroviral medications have provided HIV-positive Americans with 3 million years of extended life. But none of these drugs can cure HIV/AIDS, many have side effects that can be severe, and most are expensive. What s more, after 20 years on AIDS drugs, some people — about 40,000 in the United States alone — develop resistance to the drugs and no longer respond to treatment. The new protease inhibitor darunavir is intended to help this group of people.

.Reference resource: Click Here.

Last week, the FDA approved a new drug to combat AIDS that is expected to help in the global fight against the virus. The new drug combines three of the most widely used AIDS treatments into a once-a-day pill. Traditionally, AIDS patients take a variety of drugs at varying times throughout the day to combat the effects of the virus. By simplifying treatment options, patients are more likely to stick to their drug regimen and less likely to develop drug-resistant AIDS strains (which can occur if a patient misses just five percent of their recommended drug doses).

The FDA says the drug will be available as part of President Bush’s $15 billion effort to combat AIDS in the developing world. In other positive news for global AIDS treatment, Gilead, one of the makers of the new drug, plans to slash prices for its other AIDS drugs for middle-income countries, such as Mexico. In a press release praising Gilead’s move, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation argues that with all the attention focused on combating AIDS in the developing world, middle-income countries are often left paying the U.S. price tag for AIDS treatment, a price they can rarely afford.

.Reference resource: Click Here.