Question
I missed a dose of PEP.
2 January 2022. Related: Adherence, All topics, PEP/PEPSE.
Hi. I am taking PEP and I forgot to take my pill at the exact time I always take it. I remembered in 8 hrs and took the pill. Can I continue to take my pill the exact time I always take it? And does this reduce my chances of not getting HIV? Please help.
Answer
Hi, how are you doing?
Yes you can continue to take PEP at the usual time you do.
Although it is better to not miss any meds, if you do forget once or twice, this is unlikely to make much difference. Especially if these are doses towards the end of the month.
While it is not advised, missing a dose by a few hours is unlikely to cause a problem. PEP remains in the body for more than 24 hours. As you remembered tot take PEP, the levels within your body would have stayed at a biologically significant level.
If you have another question please ask,
Josh.
Hi Tony, no this will not reduce how effective your treatment is. The medication used in PEP have a half life longer than 24 hours. This means they will still work even if you are an hour or two late with your medication. While it is not recommended to do this regularly, doing so once is not going to risk PEP not working.
Hello I missed by dose of Tivicay and Truvada on day 13 by just under two hours. Does this make the medication ineffective?
I have been consistent within a 10 minute window.
Hi Stewart, stopping at day 24 will not mean you will get HIV. While it is a recommendation to continue a course of PEP for 28 days, this is more a matter of convenience rather than increasing how effective PEP is. In most cases, completing the first 21 days is the most important time to be adherent with your medication. As you continued until day 24, it is most likely that PEP has been effective and you are not at risk of HIV.
I took only 24 doses of pep and I stopped will I still get HIV
hi Rhina, please just continue with PEP as normal. Don’t worry about the missed dose.
Hi,if I have missed the pep dosage twice can I still continue with the medication or it can’t work?
Hi Nokubonga, how many days of PEP have you already taken?
hey, i missed 2 dose of pep. does that mean ill definately get hiv?
Hi Eve, yes it will still be effective. Continue taking it at 10pm as normal. Being late with one dose by a few hours will not reduce how effective PEP is.
Hi pls I was supposed to take my pep 10pm after dinner and I slept so I took it 2hours late pls will still be effective