Clinical Highlights From AIDS 2010: An Interview With Joel Gallant, M.D.

As AIDS 2010 drew to a close, Fred Schaich of the International Foundation for Alternative Research in AIDS sat down with one of the U.S.'s top HIV/AIDS clinicians, Joel Gallant, M.D., for his take on the clinical highlights from the conference -- that is, the developments that are most likely to have an impact on HIV treatment in the future.

During their 21-minute chat, Gallant and Schaich touched on a number of key studies presented at AIDS 2010, including:

• Thoughts on the CAPRISA microbicide trial and the future of antiretroviral-based prevention methods. (Begins at 1:24)
• The latest in the "when to start" debate regarding antiretroviral therapy, including new International AIDS Society-USA guidelines and results from the CASCADE study. (Begins at 3:24)
• Mixed news on TMC278 (rilpivirine), an NNRTI in development, from the ECHO and THRIVE studies. (Begins at 5:35)
• Encouraging results on the pipeline integrase inhibitor S/GSK1349572 (from the SPRING-1 and VIKING studies), tempered by concerns over the impact of raltegravir resistance. (Begins at 7:24)
• Research on a once-daily, extended-release form of Viramune (nevirapine), which found that the dose appears effective but that short-term side effects, such as acute skin complications, may be a concern. (Begins at 9:37)
• Studies on "nuke-sparing" (i.e., NRTI-free) options: Reyataz (atazanavir) plus Isentress (raltegravir) in the SPARTAN study (which didn't look so great), and Kaletra (lopinavir/ritonavir) plus raltegravir in the PROGRESS study (which looked pretty good). (Begins at 11:14)
• A discussion on the potential benefits and risks of "simplifying" treatment (by reducing the number of antiretrovirals in a successful regimen), including a look at the SPIRAL study. (Begins at 12:43)
• A brief look at Selzentry (maraviroc) as first-line treatment, which appeared promising in a phase 2 study. (Begins at 16:07)
• An assessment of how HIV treatment options may evolve over the years to come -- for better or for worse. (Begins at 16:24)

You can watch the full interview below; video production is courtesy of Gregory Fowler.