[e-drug] AZT v stavudine

["Beverley Snell" <bev@burnet.edu.au>]

E-DRUG: AZT v stavudine
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As a follow up to the message about the risks of stavudine:

In Papua New Guinea HIV positive patients requiring ARV treatment when 
the program started were mostly already ill and already significantly 
anaemic. The risks of increased anaemia associated with the use of AZT 
was found to be too great with numerous patients developing very severe 
anaemia and a number of anaemia related deaths.   Therefore stavudine (30 
mg) was and continues to be used as part of the initial treatment 
together with lamivudine and nevirapine. Patients have done well.  The 
dangers of anaemia would be less severe once the patients have become 
well.  It would therefore be important to examine the possibility of 
starting with D4T and switching to AZT when the individual's health improves.

Beverley Snell and Steve Wesselingh
-- 

Beverley Snell 
<bev@burnet.edu.au>
and Professor Steven Wesselingh, Director, Burnet Institute
<stevew@burnet.edu.au>
Macfarlane Burnet Institute for Medical Research & Public Health 
GPO Box 2284, Melbourne 3001 Australia
http://www.burnet.internationalhealth.edu.au