HIV drug resistance is common across sub-Saharan Africa, with new population-level data showing that more than one in three people on antiretroviral therapy (ART) carried at least one resistance-associated mutation between 2015 and 2019, according to a new analysis published in BMC Public Health. The findings underscore the critical importance of viral load suppression, ART adherence, and country-specific programmatic factors in shaping resistance risk.
The investigators analyzed HIV drug resistance data from the Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (PHIA) surveys, the first widely available surveillance datasets of their kind in sub-Saharan Africa, to estimate HIV drug resistance prevalence and identify associated factors among adults living with HIV across nine countries between 2015 and 2019.
“The findings underscore that acquired resistance, rather than pre-treatment resistance, was the dominant issue in this population, and was strongly associated with lack of viral suppression and being on intermittent ART. These patterns point to gaps in adherence support, delayed regimen switching, and insufficient treatment monitoring,” concluded the investigators. “To combat the growing threat of HIV drug resistance and guarantee the long-term efficacy of HIV treatment programs in the area, ongoing surveillance and context-specific approaches are crucial.”
Read the full news story here.
Source : Docwire News
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