I have been on HAART for a little over a year now. Currently I am on epiver, ziagen, and viread. CD4 has been stable around 500 with no detectable viral load. In the past couple of months, I have developed very dry skin, especially on my upper torso and head (including my scalp). Unless I apply moisturizer several times a day, my skin starts to bleed in several places due to dryness. My skin also turns bright red when subjected to heat (the morning shower does it as well as exercise or warm weather). My doctor is not quite sure what is going on...I'm using alot of moisturizer and a special shampoo he prescribed. Is there anything else I can do? Is there anything documented side effect wise for the medications I am on?

Dry skin can occur with some HIV medications but can also occur due to HIV itself and other conditions. Some of the things that my patients have found that help include a humidifier in their home, moisturizers and some vitamins (e.g., vitamin E). If none of these things help, I would consider seeing a dermatologist. I would only change the antiretroviral regimen if I really thought that was what was causing the dry skin, and based upon what you tell me I doubt it.