Principles of Initiating or Switching ART to Maximize Convenience and Tolerability

Faculty

W. David Hardy, MD, AAHIVS
Scientific and Medical Consultant
Immediate Past-Chair of the Board of Directors
HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA)
Chair of the Education Committee
American Academy of HIV Medicine (AAHIVM)
Los Angeles, California

Target Audience

The educational design of this activity addresses the needs of physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners involved in the treatment of patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Educational Objective

After completing this activity, the participant should be better able to:

• Utilize switching strategies to individualize treatment and improve clinical outcomes, adherence, and tolerability

Statement of Need/Program Overview

There are many factors that may necessitate switching a patient’s antiretroviral therapy (ART) regimen, such as cost, comorbidities, adverse events, polypharmacy, pregnancy, adherence, or patient preference.^1,2 This may be particularly relevant in aging patients as they begin taking more medications to manage comorbidities that typically occur in older patients.¹ The proliferation of treatment-switching strategies has made therapeutic selection increasingly complex. Certain ART regimens may exacerbate existing comorbidities, requiring clinicians to carefully weigh switching strategies, whether they are within class, between class, or to a 2-drug regimen.¹ This self-assessment will pose clinical scenarios to measure clinician knowledge and practice behavior, which will be followed by an explanation of appropriate ART selection.

References

1. US Department of Health and Human Services. Recommendations for the use of antiretroviral drugs in pregnant women with HIV infection and interventions to reduce perinatal HIV transmission in the United States. 2020; https://clinicalinfo.hiv.gov/en/guidelines/perinatal/. Accessed September 16, 2020.
2. US Department of Health and Human Services. Guidelines for the use of antiretroviral agents in adults and adolescents living with HIV. 2019; https://clinicalinfo.hiv.gov/en/guidelines/adult-and-adolescent-arv/whats-new-guidelines Accessed September 14, 2020.

Physician Accreditation Statement

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of Global Education Group (Global) and Integritas Communications.  Global is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Physician Credit Designation

Global designates this enduring activity for a maximum of 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.  Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Global Contact Information

For information about the accreditation of this program, please contact Global at 303-395-1782 or cme@globaleducationgroup.com.

Instructions to Receive Credit

In order to receive credit for this activity, the participant must score 100% on the posttest and complete the program evaluation.

Fee Information& Refund/Cancellation Policy

There is no fee for this educational activity.

Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest

Global requires instructors, planners, managers, and other individuals and their spouses/life partners who are in a position to control the content of this activity to disclose any real or apparent conflict of interest they may have as related to the content of this activity. All identified conflicts of interest are thoroughly vetted by Global for fair balance, scientific objectivity of studies mentioned in the materials or used as the basis for content, and appropriateness of patient care recommendations.

The faculty reported the following financial relationships or relationships to products or devices he or his spouse/life partner have with commercial interests related to the content of this CME activity:

W. David Hardy, MD, AAHIVS:  Consultant/Independent Contractor: Enochian BioSciences, Gilead Sciences, Inc., Merck & Co., Inc., ViiV Healthcare/ GlaxoSmithKline plc; Stock Shareholder: Enochian BioSciences

The following planners and managers reported no financial relationships or relationships to products or devices they or their spouses/life partners have with commercial interests related to the content of this CME activity:

Lindsay Borvansky, Andrea Funk, Liddy Knight, Ashley Cann, Gena Dolson, MS, Stacey JP Ullman, MHS, Jim Kappler, PhD

Disclosure of Unlabeled Use

This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. Global and Integritas Communications do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications. 

The opinions expressed in the educational activity are those of the faculty and do not necessarily represent the views of any organization associated with this activity. Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indications, contraindications, and warnings.

Disclaimer

Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information presented in this activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed in this activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of patient conditions and possible contraindications on dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer’s product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities.