BackgroundAntiretroviral treatment (ART) for patients living with HIV (PLHIV) has improved greatly, however, challenges with daily oral dosing remain. New ART options with reduced dosing frequency and innovative delivery methods may help address these challenges. This study assesses patient and physician satisfaction with current treatments and preferences for switching to a monthly or every other month long-acting injectable (LAI) ART.MethodsThis is a cross-sectional online survey of PLHIV and physicians treating PLHIV in United States and Canada. A literature review, clinical expert input, and qualitative and quantitative pilots informed survey design. Eligible PLHIV were on ART for ≥ 6 months and virally suppressed (self-reported). Survey questions for patients evaluate satisfaction and adherence to current ART. Treatment preferences are assessed using a discrete choice experiment (DCE), where respondents choose between staying on current ART, switching to another oral ART or switching to a LAI ART. DCE treatment attributes include dosing frequency, side effects, forgivability, food/mealtime restrictions, and mode of administration. Pilot data for US patients is included here; the main survey will include approximately 550 patients and 450 physicians.ResultsOf 51 PLHIV completing the pilot survey, 80% were male, mean age was 54 years, and 63% were on ART for ≥10 years. Switching ART was common, with 55% reporting changing their ART ≥ 3 times. Just under half of patients (47%) were not totally satisfied with their current ART. Most common reasons for dissatisfaction included daily reminder of having HIV (31%) and having to take medicine every day (28%). Just over a quarter of patients (28%) reported forgetting to take their ART in the prior month. Across all DCE choices, patients preferred to remain on their current treatment 47% of the time, while 45% of the time patients preferred switching to the LAI, and for the remaining 8%, patients chose switching to another oral ART regimen.ConclusionDespite advances in ART, treatment challenges remain. Among the treatment-experienced PLHIV in this pilot survey, over half of their choices resulted in switching to an alternative regimen, and when opting to switch, most patients preferred the long-acting injectable treatment regimen.Disclosures
All authors: No reported disclosures.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.