Influenza B false-positive results by rapid molecular tests Alere™ i Influenza A&B 2 in France.

The Alere-i™ Influenza A&B (Abbott), a nicking endonuclease amplification reaction test, has recently been improved in order to deliver results in a few minutes. Our field observation highlights two problems with this new version: improper interpretation of a test as valid despite improper reagent hydration and falsely influenza B positive results. We advise users of the new system to check reagent hydration prior to reporting a result and to systematically confirm positive influenza B results.

Failure of combined antiretroviral therapy intensification with maraviroc and raltegravir in chronically HIV-1 infected patients to reduce the viral reservoir: the IntensHIV randomized trial.

Background: Ongoing HIV-1 replication in lymphoid cells is one explanation of the persistence of HIV-1 reservoirs despite highly active antiretroviral therapy (cART). We tested the potential of cART intensification by Maraviroc plus Raltegravir to decrease proviral HIV-1 DNA levels in lymphoid cells during a randomized trial.

Patients And Methods: We randomly assigned for 48 weeks 22 patients to continue their current first line regimen of Truvada® plus Kaletra® or intensify it with Maraviroc and Raltegravir.

Hepatitis E virus in HIV-infected patients.

Objectives: Many cases of acute autochthonous hepatitic E virus (HEV) hepatitis have been reported in France, mainly from the south. Chronic HEV infection has recently been described in immunosuppressed patients. Although a potential risk of chronicity exists in HIV-infected patients, no survey has been conducted in this population.

Rectal cell-associated HIV-1 RNA: a new marker ready for the clinic.

Gut-associated lymphoid tissue is a huge reservoir for HIV-1. Developing new strategies to target "residual" HIV-1 in patients on effective therapy brings the need for an evaluation of tissue reservoirs in the clinic. We measured cell-associated HIV-1 RNA and DNA in blood and rectal biopsies from 23 patients, including 14 with undetectable viremia on HAART, by using an adaptation of commercially available tests.

Prevalence of complete resistance to at least two classes of antiretroviral drugs in treated HIV-1-infected patients: a French nationwide study.

The objective of the study was to estimate the prevalence of HIV-1 resistance to all drugs belonging to two or more antiretroviral drug (ARV) classes in treated patients in France. All genotyping assays performed in June 2001 and in November 2002 by the ANRS resistance laboratory network were analyzed by the ANRS algorithm. The 17 and 21 centers of the ANRS network participating in the study in 2001 and 2002, respectively, genotyped the viruses in plasma of 456 and 529 patients, respectively.

French national sentinel survey of antiretroviral drug resistance in patients with HIV-1 primary infection and in antiretroviral-naive chronically infected patients in 2001-2002.

Objective: To survey the frequency of genotypic antiretroviral resistance and the spread of non-B subtypes in patients with primary HIV-1 infection (2001-2002) and in treatment-naive chronically HIV-1-infected patients (2001).

Methods: Plasma samples from 303 patients with acute HIV-1 infection (Primo study) and 363 treatment-naive patients with chronic HIV-1 infection (Odyssee study) were tested for genotypic resistance. Resistance mutations were identified from the International AIDS Society Resistance Testing-USA panel and resistant viruses were defined according to the French Agence Nationale de Recherches sur le SIDA (ANRS) resistance algorithm.

Metabolic evaluation of HIV-infected patients receiving a regimen containing lopinavir/ritonavir (Kaletra).

Purpose: We have analyzed retrospectively the evolution of metabolic parameters in a cohort of 159 HIV-infected patients taking a lopinavir/ritonavir-containing regimen during a mean period of 15 months.

Method: This study was completed by an additional evaluation after strict 12 hours fasting of total cholesterol (TC), HDL-c, LDL-c, triglycerides (TG), glucose, and insulin levels in a subset of 100 patients from the cohort.

Results: TC and TG levels increased early after introduction of lopinavir/ritonavir, but remained subsequently stable.

The HYDILE trial: efficacy and tolerance of a quadruple combination of reverse transcriptase inhibitors versus the same regimen plus hydroxyurea or hydroxyurea and interleukin-2 in HIV-infected patients failing protease inhibitor-based combinations.

Purpose: To compare the efficacy and tolerance of a stavudine (d4T), didanosine (ddI), efavirenz (EFV), and abacavir (ABC) combination regimen with an identical regimen plus hydroxyurea (HU), or plus HU and interleukin-2 (IL-2), in patients failing protease inhibitor-based combinations and naive of EFV and ABC.

Method: This was a randomized prospective trial in 69 HIV-infected patients recruited in one clinical center. Antiretroviral drugs were administered at standard doses according to weight.