Question
Can I change when I take Atripla?
1 October 2012. Related: Adherence, All topics.
Hi am 38, pregnant with my 2nd child, and I just find out I’m HIV positive.
I have a CD4 of 770 and viral load 490.
My doctor started me on Atripla. Since I’m 22 weeks pregnant my problem is side effects to the drug.
This is just my 2nd week on treatment. I started taking it at 20:30 for 2 nights. The side effects were bad so I changed to 21h30 for 2 nights.
My doctor advised I change to morning dose so changed to 08h00 for the past 4 days.
Dizziness is still the major problem now thinking of taking it at 06h30. How dangerous is this changing to development of resistance or treatment failure?
Answer
Thanks for your email. I’m sorry to hear about your recent diagnosis, and the difficulties you are having with treatment.
Generally it is recommended to take Atripla at night, just before you go to bed. This is because the side effects- such as dizziness- are usually highest 3-5 hours after taking the pill. If you take it at night you should therefore sleep through the worst of the side effects. This can mean that you experience strange dreams or disturbed sleep though. When you were taking it at night when were you having the side effects?
Another way to reduce side effects is to make sure you are taking Atripla on an empty stomach. This means taking it two hours or longer after you have eaten. This is important because taking Atripla with food can make side effects worse.
For most people side effects improve after a few weeks on treatment. It’s important to try to get into a routine of when you are taking your treatment as soon as possible. It’s better not to keep changing the time that you take it as this may make it more likely that you develop resistance, especially in the first few weeks.
It’s worth going back to your doctor if this isn’t getting easier.
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