Question
Could changing from Atripla to Tribuss have caused my viral load to increase?
18 May 2012. Related: All topics, CD4 and viral load, South Africa.
During my last test (6 months ago) my VL was less than 40.
Three months ago, my medical aid changed my medication from Atripla to Tribuss and have been taking my medication regurlaly as required.
I just received my latest test results now and my VL is 686. Could the change of medication have caused the VL to increase? Is it normal that it would increase so significantly in such a small period of time?
What could have caused the VL to increase so much?
Answer
Tribuss is a generic version of the brand name drug Atripla. They contain the same chemical properties and it is unlikely that swapping from one to the other would cause a change in how effective they treatment was.
Your doctor will need to find out why your viral load has increased and if this is a real result. How are you doing with taking your meds? These drugs are usually able to keep viral load undetectable if you are careful to take them at the same time every day. Are you taking any other medications that might be affecting your drug levels?
It’s important to have a second test to confirm these results. This is because there is a possibility that this could be a temporary blip or a lab error, and this needs to be checked before any change of treatment is made.
Did your clinic draw blood for another test when you received your last test results?
If the second test result shows that your viral load has increased your doctor will probably discuss the options for changing treatment. If possible you should have a resistance test to see if you have developed resistance to any of the drugs in your combination.
Please take a look at this link for more information about viral load tests and changing treatment.
Hi Siziwe, please see this previous question. If you have any questions after reading this please let me know!
Halo rebecca am 22 years old.ma med aid recommended Tribuss I wanna know if z it safe t0 fall pragnant while am using it?
Hi Lethabo,
Do you know what type of test this was? The most accurate test for babies is called the PCR test. If the test you used was an antibody test it is important to have this confirmed with a PCR test to be confident of the result. You can read more about testing babies at this link.
Hi Rebecca on the 30 november 2012. I took my 6months old boy to lancet Lab for Hiv test as u have advised me. Now im the happiest woman in the whole world. My baby boy hes Hiv negative as im writting to u im holding the test result now, i would like to thank u for the advise im relieved now. And i also Thanks the almighty God for listening for my prayer and also given us a person like u guys, i wish u all the best in life, and im also praying that God must give the scientist more knowledge to find cure of Hiv. So that all of us who are infected can be healed. I wish u good luck with your staff.
Hi Lethabo,
Although it sounds like you’ve done everything you can to protect your baby the only way to know if s/he is HIV negative is to test him/her. You can read about testing babies in our pregnancy guide.
I wish you the best of luck!
Hi im lethabo, i was 5 months pregnant when i took Hiv test my doctor gave me tribuss. I gave birth to my baby by caesarian, then i decide not to breastfeed the baby i gave the baby formular milk. And my doctor prescribe zedovudine for baby to drink for 6 weeks. (Is the baby not infected with Hiv? )
Im 5months pregnant and discover that im hiv positive, my doctor prescribe tribuss for me. Is my child going to be safe from this virus?
Hi Lerato,
I’m sorry to hear about your recent diagnosis. Taking tribuss during pregnancy will make it much less likely that your baby will get HIV. You can read more about this in our pregnancy guide.
Hi Zolisa, a rash can be a side effect of tribuss or atripla. It’s important that you get your doctor to look at this rash as there is a small possibility this could be a serious reaction to your treatment. For more info please see this previous question.
my medical aid changed me from atripla to tribuss. Now I’ve developed a rash on my neck that looks very bad I’ve been 2 a pharmacy but still there is no improvement, is this a side effect of tribuss?