Treatment Benefits Are Long-Lasting

Everyone knows that antiretroviral drugs can produce increases in CD4-cell counts and drops in viral levels, but just how long do those improvements continue? According to a Dutch study presented at the 13th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections, improvements in CD4 levels continue even after seven years of treatment. Although CD4-cell rebounds slowed in later years of treatment, they did continue to improve, particularly among HIVers who began treatment with lower baseline counts, according to the study of 505 Dutch HIV-positive adults. Years of treatment; Median annual CD4-cell rebound ''One-three; 70 cells ''Three-five; 30 cells ''Five-seven; 10 cells