Guidelines for antiretroviral therapy in adults

These guidelines are intended as an update to those published in the Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine in January 2008. Since the release of the previous guidelines, the scale-up of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in Southern Africa has continued to grow. Cohort studies from the region show excellent clinical outcomes; however, ART is still being started late (in advanced disease), resulting in relatively high early mortality rates. New data on antiretroviral (ARV) tolerability in the region and several new ARV drugs have become available. Although currently few in number, some patients in the region are failing protease inhibitor (PI)-based second-line regimens. To address this, guidelines on third-line (or 'salvage') therapy have been expanded.