Transmitted Drug Resistance and Antiretroviral Treatment Outcomes in Non-Subtype B HIV-1–Infected Patients in South East Asia

BACKGROUND: We compared treatment outcomes of transmitted drug resistance (TDR) in patients on fully or partially sensitive drug regimens. METHODS: Factors associated with survival and failure were analyzed using Cox proportional hazards and discrete time conditional logistic models. RESULTS: TDR, found in 60 (4.1%) of 1471 Asian treatment-naive patients, was one of the significant predictors of failure. Patients with TDR to >1 drug in their regimen were >3 times as likely to fail compared to no TDR. CONCLUSIONS: TDR was associated with failure in the context of non-fully sensitive regimens. Efforts are needed to incorporate resistance testing into national treatment programs.