European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

ANAEMIA DUE TO DIFFERENT ANTI-RETROVIRAL REGIMENS IN HIV POSITIVE PATIENTS

Prashant Maheshwari*, Pooja Agarwal, Virendra Kushwaha, Ambrish Gupta, B. P. Priyadarshi and Tanu Midha

ABSTRACT

Objective: To study the pattern of Anaemia due to different anti-retroviral regimens in HIV/AIDS patients. Material & Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted over a period of fifteen months at ART Centre, GSVM Medical College Kanpur. All HIV positive patients attending O.P.D. who encountered ADRs were enrolled in our study irrespective to their age and sex. Data was collected using ADR reporting form issued by Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission. Causality assessment was done by using Naranjo’s Probability Scale. Modified Hartwig severity scale was used to evaluate severity, WHO criteria for seriousness and guidelines of council for international organizations of medical sciences to decide the predictability of ADRs. Results: A total no of 250 patients encountered various types of ADRs during our study period i.e. January 2015 to March 2016. Total number of ADRs recorded was 452. Out of total ADRs recorded 131 ADRs were anaemia. Maximum burden of anaemia was found in the patients who were on zidovudine based regimen. CD4 count <250 cells/mm3 was observed as a risk factor for development of anaemia. On severity scale most of the cases of anaemia were found to be of mild type. Conclusion: Almost every anti-retroviral drug is associated with anaemia but incidence is maximum with zidovudine containing regimens. So clinician should prescribe tenofovir based first line anti-retroviral regimen whenever possible as tenofovir has less adverse drug reactions especially anaemia in comparision to zidovudine and recently WHO also recommended that tenofovir based regimen should be preferred as first line regimen.

Keywords: HIV, Anti-Retroviral Therapy, Adverse Drug Reaction, Anaemia.