The Relationship between Virus Load Response to Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy and Change in CD4 Cell Counts: A Report from the Women’s Interagency HIV Study

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Abstract
The relationship between the pattern of virus load response to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and CD4 lymphocyte response was assessed in a cohort of 249 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1—infected women at 3 times: 1 before and 2 after initiation of therapy, with follow-up of 6–12 months. Patients with a durable response to HAART (i.e., >1 log decrease in HIV-1 RNA sustained for the study periods) had a continuous and significant increase in CD4 cell counts over time, whereas those with no response (1 log, followed by a subsequent decrease <0.5 log) had an increase in CD4 cell count, followed by a plateau. The trend in CD4 cell count differed significantly by response to HAART, with those patients who experienced a durable response having significantly higher CD4 cell counts than others.