What Is An Azt Break

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An Overview of Retrovir (Zidovudine, AZT)

zye-DOE-vyoo-deen Brand Name: Retrovir Other Name(s): AZT, Azidothymidine, ZDV Drug Class: Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors What is zidovudine? Zidovudine is a type of medicine called a nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI). It works by disrupting one of the early steps in the HIV life cycle, called reverse transcription. During normal reverse transcription, HIV's reverse transcriptase enzyme (a type...

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AZT TONGUE PIGMENTATION- AZT 2 ever?

Hi Doctor Young, Does AZT cause a nasty looking pigmenation (black to purple spots to develop on the inside of the tongue and mouth?) Does the AZT that is offered as medicine today in combination with other drugs still produce this result? AZT...

Response from Benjamin Young, M.D., Ph.D.

Rocky Mountain CARES

Zidovudine (ADV, AZT) can cause hyperpigmentation of nails and skin- I suppose that it could cause hyperpigmentation of the tongue, but I am not aware of this personally. Yes, when used in combination, the possibility of side effects remain,... Read more »

AZT (Retrovir) & Pregnancy How to know if your resistient to AZT

In 1988 I had a child. 3 months later I was informed her father tested positive. So did I. The baby did not. 1990 - 1991 I took AZT (Retrovir) 1 pill 5 x a day. Then stopped taking it. In 1993 I became pregnant again. Started taking AZT again...

Response from John L. Sullivan, M.D.

University of Massachusetts, Medical School

The risk of transmitting HIV to your infant is directly linked to your viral load; if your viral load is less than 50 copies/ml your risk is less than 1%; the therapy that reduces your viral load to less than 50 can include many different drugs and... Read more »

want to take a break

i have been takingn ARV for a year now. i have developed very bad side effect of lipodystrophy. big bust and small butocks. skinny arms and chicken legs. when i consulted my doctor he changed my regime from trimune 40 to duovir ie, nevirapine and...

Response from David Wohl, M.D.

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

It sounds like you may be having side effects related to your new regimen. I would be sure to check in with your doctor so that she/he can examine you and perhpas check your blood to see if there are any major adverse effects occuring. If not, it... Read more »

Involuntary break and tests for baby

Dear Doc, 1) I travelled for 2 months and ran out of crixivan which is part of my meds of 3TC and Retrovir. My viral load has been undetectable ever since I started taking the meds in October 2002 and my CD4 had risen from below 10 to 360 over this...

Response from David Wohl, M.D.

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Sorry for the delay in writing back. You did the right thing by stopping all of the medications for exactly the reasons you state. Taking the Retrovir (AZT) and 3TC alone could have led to resistance to these. You can restart all once you get... Read more »

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