Advances in therapies, expanded access to treatment, and evolution of diagnostic methods have changed HIV infection from a lethal disease to a chronic illness controlled with adequate, continuous treatment. Considering the preferred regimen Tenofovir (TDF), Lamivudine (3TC), and Dolutegravir (DTG), TDF is notable for renal toxicity and decreased bone mineral density. Studies have considered dual therapy with 3TC/DTG to reduce the number of drugs and potential adverse events, and to increase dosing convenience. The study aimed to characterize the profile of patients using coformulated dual therapy 3TC/DTG followed at an Infectious Disease Reference Hospital in Goiás. Epidemiological study using secondary data from the reference hospital on patients who began coformulated dual therapy 3TC/DTG in January and February 2024 and met the criteria of Technical Note No. 35/2024-CGAHV/.DATHI/SVSA/MS. Variables analyzed were sex, age, race, schooling, marital status, antiretroviral therapy (ART) prior to 3TC/DTG (dual therapy with separate agents), and reason for the change. The study was approved by a Research Ethics Committee (CAAE: 85871325.5.0000.0034). Of 124 patients who started coformulated 3TC/DTG, 67 were eligible. Most were male (50.7%), Brown-skinned (55.2%), with 4–7 years of schooling (34.3%), single (50.7%), and aged 50–59 years (49.3%). Age ranged from 51 to 80 years, mean 60.5 ± 6.5. The most used prior regimen was TDF + 3TC/DTG (73.1%). The most reported reasons for switching were renal (43.3%) and bone (16.4%) alterations. Sex and race distributions were similar to the profile of people living with HIV in the state. Low schooling did not interfere with adherence, since adherence is a criterion for migration to coformulated dual therapy 3TC/DTG. TDF + 3TC/DTG was the most used prior regimen. Adverse events associated with TDF motivated therapeutic substitution, highlighting the importance of comprehensive follow-up to prevent functional harm from ART.
Guimarães et al. (Sun,) studied this question.