New single-dose drug revolutionizes HIV treatment

Always looking for innovations for the treatment of diseases such as HIV, Anvisa released the first injectable medicine for the prevention of the virus. Called apretude, the drug acts as an antiretroviral, inhibiting the enzyme integrase, which prevents the virus from being integrated into human DNA.

It thus acts as a means of preventing the reproduction of the virus and also of infecting other cells that may already have the presence of the virus. HIV. Therefore, this new drug becomes a new alternative to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

Until then, PrEP consisted of taking a series of pills daily to prepare the body for possible HIV infection. Since 2017, SUS has been offering this cocktail of pills to the population.

Understand what PrEP is

Several people, as a form of prevention against HIV, used daily pills, taken mainly before sexual intercourse, to prepare for a possible infection. With that, a series of regular tests for the disease were carried out, to accompany the diagnosis not only of the

HIV, but also from other sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

The Ministry of Health recommends the use of PrEP for people who are sexually active, who have not been infected by the virus, but who are at a higher risk. Among these people, the Ministry of Health recommends use for:

• Sex workers;
• addicts;
• “Serum discordant” couples, that is, with one seropositive and the other not;
• Gays, women, trans and cross-dressing.

It is worth noting that PrEP does not protect against infection from other STIs, does not prevent pregnancy, and medical advice is required.

Another modality of PrEP indicated

The strategy mentioned above is aimed at long-term prevention, with daily treatment. The other can be applied at times when exposure to HIV is suspected. This consists of a cocktail with two pills, which must be taken from 2 to 24 hours before sexual intercourse. Then, 1 tablet is taken 24 hours after the initial dose of 2 tablets, and another 24 hours after the second dose.

The new medicine approved by Anvisa can be used by all people who are vulnerable to the virus. So far, the drug is not yet available for SUS.