Question
What happens if I miss a dose?
5 February 2018. Related: Adherence, All topics.
Hi,
I’m aged 28, female, im starting this new Atroiza today. I’m responsible but what happens if I miss a day or 30 min off drinking my tablet.
Answer
Hi,
Thanks for your email.
The best reason to aim for the same time every day, is so that you get into a good routine. This will help you make your meds an easy part of your life. This is especially true when you first start treatment until your viral load becomes undetectable.
Generally it is OK to have a window of an hour either side of your normal time to take your meds. So if you aim to take it at 9 pm each day so long as you take it between 8pm and 10pm this will all be fine.
Most people will miss a dose at some point, but so long as this is not every week , this is also okay.If this keeps happening, please talk to your doctor about things that might help. The more doses you miss though the more likely that you will develop drug resistance.
Please see this page about adherence for more information.
Note: This answer was updated in February 2018 from a question first posted online in September 2013.
I miss taking my pill yesterday. I am so worried! What should I do. Please help me
Hi John,
As the above post explains, you’ll be OK. Just take your meds as normal.
Hi, i forgot to take my pill yesterday what should i do
Hi Oratile,
Yes it’s possible to have AIDS when you’re taking ARVs. However, this is if you have a low CD4 count.
Can you have aids while taking medication?
Hi Hope,
If you’ve missed your meds for a month you should ideally book an appointment to see your doctor. Depending on where it is that you live they should check your CD4 count as well as your viral load. They may need to discuss other treatment options with you as there’s a chance that you may have developed resistance to the meds that you’ve previously been taking. There will be alternative options though and it’s good that you want to restart taking medication.
hi am hope am HIV and I’ve skipped for a month now what will happen if I start again
Hi Khanyo,
Though ARVs should be taken daily, missing two doses won’t be a problem. However, if possible you should ensure that you take them daily.
I miss a dose of two while I was away but I’m making sure I carry them with me all the time ,is it still OK?
Hi Manzini,
If you’re asking if it’s going to be OK to restart with the meds that you’d taken for day once you have your results back, then yes this will be OK.