substitution therapy – using a prescription drug, eg methadone or buprenorphine, to stop using heroin.
Glossary
Selected words and phrases
antibiotic – drug used to treat bacterial infections. Sometimes they work against other kinds of infection.
AST (aspartate aminotransferase; also called serum glutamicoxaloacetic transaminase; SGOT) – an enzyme that is made in many places throughout the body (heart, intestines, muscle) , which is monitored (as with ALT) routinely in HIV-positive people on ARVs to detect liver toxicity from HIV drugs (or other medications). Elevated AST that is specifically made in the liver signals liver injury, but does not indicate how serious liver damage is.
latent – not active at present, resting. Latently infected CD4 cells are CD4 cells that are infected with HIV but which are resting. HIV drugs do not work on resting cells.
bilateral – both sides.