Glossary

undetectable – an amount smaller than a test can measure. For viral load tests, this means below 400 or, more commonly, below 50 copies/mL, depending on the make of test. In research laboratories, some very sensitive tests can measure down to 1 copy/mL.

type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM) – an illness that usually affect adults (previously called adult-onset diabetes), when glucose levels increase because the body does not produce enough insulin or does not respond well to insulin.

TST – tuberculosis skin test

boosted-PI – a protease inhibitor taken with an additional dose of ritonavir. The ritonavir boost levels of the protease inhibitor by either increasing the initial drugs levels or reducing how quickly or reducing how quickly it is removed by your body. Ritonavir (itself a protease inhibitor) is currently the only drug used in this way. Other boosters are in development including cobicistat which has no direct anti-HIV activity.

phenotype test – a type of drug resistance that tests whether a drug is sensitive or resistance to a sample of HIV.