Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has reduced AIDS-related morbidity and mortality; however, it has been associated with metabolic abnormalities including dyslipidemia and dysglycemia depending on the regimens used. The aims of this study w...
Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has reduced AIDS-related morbidity and mortality; however, it has been associated with metabolic abnormalities including dyslipidemia and dysglycemia depending on the regimens used. The aims of this study were to analyze the prescription patterns of antiretroviral agents and to examine the prevalence of lipid abnormalities among the prescriptions of HAART. The electronic medical records (EMR) of HIV patients were retrospectively reviewed from January 2007 to September 2012 based on our inclusion criteria. The patients who had taken HAART for at least 3 months were included in this study. The lipid profiles of patients on antiretrovirals (ARTs) were collected from his or her laboratory data, and dyslipidemia was defined as total cholesterol (TC) ≥240 mg/dL and triglycerides (TG) >200 mg/dL. Eighty-four prescriptions were discovered during the study period. Twenty-three prescriptions were the combination of two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) and one non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI). Fifty-three prescriptions were the combination of two NRTIs and one protease inhibitor (PI) and thirty-nine prescriptions of them included a PI booster. Eight prescriptions were the combination of two NRTIs and one integrase inhibitor. The Incidence of hypertriglyceridemia among the patients receiving HAART was totally about 41.7% (2NRTIs+PI regimen vs. 2NRTIs+NNRTI regimen vs. 2 NRTIs+integrase inhibitor regimen, 52% vs. 12.5% vs. 25%), but there was no incidence of hypercholesterolemia. This study investigated that the prescription medication patterns and dyslipidemia associated with lipid abnormalities among HIV patients receiving HAART. The types of HAART prescription regimens had an effect on the occurrence of hypertriglycemia. Further studies related to metabolic abnormalities and adverse effects of HIV patients on ARTs are needed in the near future.