Do you think adolescents with AIDS should get different treatment doses than adults?

In general, we tend to use pediatric dosing guidelines for children and young adolescents (< 13 years) and adult dosing for individuals > 13 years. However, as children with perinatally-acquired HIV age into adolescence and an increasing number of individuals acquire new infection during adolescence, it has become important to try to understand whether or how HIV infection in adolescents differs from that in children or adults. It has also been important to be sure that we understand how best to dose antiviral medications in adolescents and clinical trials of new agents often include an adolescent population. For further information, you might wish to check out the pediatric treatment guidelines (available on this web site) and the Pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group Web site (www.pactg.s-3.com) for more specific information on treatment issues and available clinical trials in adolescents.