AEGiS-GMHC: In Brief: Earlier Use of AZT

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1990. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

In Brief: Earlier Use of AZT

GMHC Treatment Issues; Volume 4 no. 2 April 6, 1990

The FDA formally announced a labeling change for AZT, allowing physicians to prescribe the drug for any HIV-infected individual with fewer than 500 T4 cells. The dosage recommended is 500 mg a day, based on results from a study that recruited over 1300 asymptomatic patients (protocol # 019). Twice as many patients in the placebo arm had disease progression compared to the patients in the treatment arms, who received either 1500 mg or 500 mg AZT daily.

Since no significant difference was noted between the two doses, the lower one is recommended. Results from this study were recently published in the April 5, 1990 issue of New England Journal of Medicine. This paper notes that the long-term effects of AZT use in asymptomatic patients is unknown, and that further study is necessary to determine if AZT improves survival in this population.

Information already gathered about the drug mostly concerns toxicity. The community-based study is funded in part by a $250,000 grant from Sandoz Pharmaceuticals, maker of ganciclovir.

900406
GM040205

Copyright © 1990 - Treatment Issues. Reproduced with permission. Treatment Issues is published twelve times yearly by GMHC, Inc. All rights reserved. Noncommercial reproduction is encouraged. Subscription lists are kept confidential. GMHC Treatment Issues, The Tisch Building, 119 West 24th Street, New York, NY 10011 fredg@gmhc.org http://www.gmhc.org

AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, Elton John AIDS Foundation, iMetrikus, Inc., John M. Lloyd Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2003. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.

Copyright ©1980, 2003. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .