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.
Hi ,im 53yrs old and my husband is 58yrs old.im hiv possitive and my husband deny a condom.im afraid i will infect him but he dnt wkrry about that and he did not do some tests.what must i do
Hi Winnie,
Sorry, but we are not doctors at i-Base. However we do provide info about HIV treatment.
It’s easy to forget taking our pills. Perhaps you can use some of these tips to help remember.
But if you’re on PEP the usual dose is for 28 days. For PEP to work it’s important to start taking it as soon as possible after you’ve had exposure to HIV. So missing doses at the end of 28 days is likely to be less important.
Please see this link for more info about PEP.
Hi doctor I’m currently on PEP and i seem ti hace memory loss like today i can’t remember wether I took the piks ir not I’m confused… But when I count at the number of tablet seems like there’s an extra 2 pills will be left after completing my 22 days
Hi Zanie,
It’s great that you’ve been taking ARVs for 6 years and have never missed a dose. Your ARVs look like they’re working very well because viral load is undetectable. You’re doing great.
But it’s not likely that missing one day will have any affect. Can you pick the prescription up today?
We all miss a dose very occasionally like this. But this does not affect how well our ARVs work.
What ARVs are you taking? Please let us know.
I’ve been on my ARVs for about 6yrs now and have never gone a day without taking them, my viral load is undetected. I forgot to go pick up my prescription today & unfortunately I don’t have any pills left which in turn means I will miss my dosage entirely. Now I’m freaking out and don’t know what impact this will mean to me? Please advise.
P.s, I normally take them at 8pm everyday, when I realised that I don’t have meds it was too late as the pharmacy I collect at had closed.
Hi Lungile,
There’s no danger in changing the time you have your dinner. However, some HIV meds need to be taken with food. Other HIV meds, such as Atroiza, are taken before bedtime on a fairly empty stomach. That’s because a high fat meal can increase the risk of side effects. Taking Atroiza before bed also means that if you have side effects they happen when you’re asleep.
I use to have dinner at 10pm. But I hv test positive this year l decided to take my medication at 9pm before dinner …… Is there any danger in this situation? And l have tried to eat early than that but it’s so hard to me please help
Hi Isa,
As you know ARVs at the moment need to be taken daily. If you’re missing meds on a regular basis you may develop resistance. If you need to travel, the best thing to do would be to always take more meds than you think you’ll need. If you’ve just missed the odd day, then this will be OK.
I am a constant traveller, some times I took my medication for 7 days and and my travels sometimes beyonds that days and I miss a day or two, pls advice me
Hi Eva,
Lots of people set an alarm on their phone, if you have a mobile you could set an alarm for the time that you take your meds. This is what I do and it works for me.
The warts are not caused by the meds but they might show now because your immune system is getting stronger. Please talk to your doctor about this and also about the rash.