A randomized study comparing triple versus double antiretroviral therapy or no treatment in HIV-1-infected patients in very early stage disease: the Spanish Earth-1 study

Abstract

This study supports the recommendation to start antiretroviral therapy with a three-drug combination during very early stages of HIV-1 disease, at least if viral load is above a cut-off point (10000 copies/ml in our study). The risk of progression was sevenfold higher in non-treated patients at 8 months of follow-up. Some immune system parameters improved toward normal values after 1 year of antiretroviral therapy, but the proliferative response of CD4 T lymphocytes against the p24 HIV-1 antigen was not recovered. Therapeutic approaches with more potent, better-tolerated and more convenient regimens will increasingly favour early intervention with antiretroviral t