Abstract
A fixed-dose co-formulated antiretroviral drug containing elvitegravir, a new integrase strand transfer inhibitor, boosted by a novel pharmacokinetic enhancer cobicistat, and further containing the nucleoside pair of tenofovir and emtricitabine was recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a single-tablet, once-a-day treatment of HIV-1 infection in antiretroviral therapy-naive adults. This drug was found to be noninferior to two currently preferred antiretroviral regimens in clinical practice in two large, 48-week, phase III studies. Renal adverse effects limit its use to those with creatinine clearance > 70 mL/min; its considerable drug interaction potential requires care and attention when used. Nevertheless, the availability of this fixed-dose combination product is an important progress in the management of HIV infection for a number of reasons: It provides a third option for a onepill, once-a-day antiretroviral regimen; it is the first such regimen that is not based on a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor; and it provides an alternative to ritonavir for the pharmaco-enhancement of other antiretroviral drugs.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 765-771 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Drugs of Today |
Volume | 48 |
Issue number | 12 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 2012 |
Keywords
- Anti-HIV agent
- Cobicistat/elvitegravir/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine
- Fixed-dose combination
- Quad
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pharmacology
- Pharmacology (medical)