Please Note: Due to volume considerations, not all questions can be answered. Questions most likely to be answered will be those of general interest to a broad group of visitors to this forum. Questions pertaining to a specific case; requests for diagnosis, medical advice, or second opinion; or requests for opinions about untested alternative therapies will generally not be answered.
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twin pregnancy and HIV treatment
Dec 30, 2006
i am pregnant with twin pregnancy and i would like to know whether i can opt for single drug ARV or do i need to go for multidrug combination?
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Response from Dr. Luzuriaga
ARV's are used during pregnancy to optimize maternal health and to prevent transmission of the virus to the baby(ies). Recommendations are similar for women who are expecting twins as for those with single pregnancies.
To optimize your health, you should receive at least the same care and ARV that you would receive if you were not pregnant. However, if you are asymptomatic with good CD4 count (over 350) and low viral load, your care provider might not have recommended ARV for you. Even if you don't qualify for therapy for your own condition, however, you should consider ARV to prevent mother-to-child transmission of the virus. A combination of three ARV's administered as early as possible during pregnancy, is the best way to prevent HIV transmission to your babies. The use of the 3 ARV combination will also minimize the risk that you will develop resistance to any of the ARV's. The use of a single drug ARV is another option but may be less effective and carries the risk of your developing resistance to one or more ARV.
I would urge you to look over the many resources on this web site (including prior answers to questions in this Forum) on women and pregnancy and then discuss your options with your care provider. You might also wish to review the US Guidelines for the Use of Antiretroviral Agents During Pregnancy (available on this web site under the Treatment Guidelines section). You might also wish to look over the World Health Organization Guidelines on ARV During Pregnancy available at their web site (www.who.int).
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