Q and A

Question

What happens if I miss a dose?

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.

249 comments

  1. Lisa Thorley

    Hi Lebohang,

    Its very rare that a gay woman will contract HIV, therefore the risks are minimal. If you’re on medication and have an undetectable viral load there isn’t any risk.

  2. Lebohang

    Hi I’m a lesbian women. I discovered early this year that I’m HIV positive. How safe is my partner?

  3. Lisa Thorley

    Hi Nonhlanhla,

    Please see the above post. You should be fine with missing two days. However, it isn’t something that is recommended.

  4. Nonhlanhla

    Hi , I’m worried cause sometime I miss my doses so I what to know if it will course any symptoms if I miss it for 2 days

  5. Lisa Thorley

    Hi Dennis,

    Is there any particular reason why your wife is no longer on medication? When she stopped do you know what her viral load and CD4 count were?

    For what happens when someone stops taking medication please see Q7 here:

    http://i-base.info/qa/what-are-the-most-asked-questions

  6. Dennis

    My wife is on ARVs but she she has skipped since December 2016 up to now.What are the risks?

  7. Lisa Thorley

    Hi Nombu,

    You can’t contract HIV by kissing someone who is positive. In fact when someone is on medication and they have an undetectable viral load the risk of transmission when having sex without a condom is close to zero. For more info, please see here:

    http://i-base.info/qa-on-the-partner-study/

  8. .nombu

    hi. I’m worried ,I slept with someone who is taking atroiza .. i ddnt knew but we used condom when we had sex ..is possible that I got effect by kissing one another

  9. Lisa Thorley

    Hi Portia,

    Though now less common, weight gain can still be a side effect to ARV’s. For more info, please see here:

    http://i-base.info/guides/side/lipodystrophy

    However, weight gain can also be due to other issues, be this diet or a lack of exercise. How is your health overall?

  10. portia

    Its been a year now since I have been taking my meds. I’m gaining weight rapidly. What’s worrying me is my stomach its getting big, people thing I’m pregnant .

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