Summary of Product Characteristics (SPCs) – detailed information about a drug provided by the maker that is approved by the European Regulatory Agency (EMEA/CPMP). Also called EPARs.
Glossary
Selected words and phrases
nucleotide – the building blocks of the genetic code (DNA/RNA). Also called a base.
symptom – a sign of illness.
integrase inhibitor – a type of HIV drug that stops HIV genetic material from ‘integrating’ into the DNA in a cell.
This is a relatively new family of HIV drugs.
Raltegravir, elvitegravir and dolutegravir are all integrase inhibitors.
elite controller (EC) – if your viral load stays undetectable for more than five years without ART you are an elite controller.
Elite controllers also have a very good CD4 count (always above 500 cells/mm3) that stays at a similar level over many years.
Even with this good immune response, ART is still generally recommended in the long-term.
This is because over decades – some ECs have been undetectable for more than 20 years – there is a concern that low level HIV in different body compartments like the brain, might lead to accumulative serious damage that isn’t easy to detect until it is too late.
This is a real concern, though evidence is limited because of the rarity of ECs.
See: long-term slow progressor (LTSP)/long-term non-progessor (LTNP).