Sociodemographic, Clinical, and Behavioral Factors Associated with Sexual Transmitted Infection among HIV-1 Positive Migrants in Portugal: Are There Differences between Sexes?

Introduction: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) continue to occur at high levels. According to the WHO, each year there are an estimated 374 million new infections with syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and trichomoniasis. STIs are associated with an increased risk of acquiring HIV infection.

Treatment patterns and preferences of people living with HIV starting or switching antiretroviral therapy: Real-world evidence from Portugal.

Background: There is a lack of up-to-date real-life evidence on antiretroviral therapy (ART) strategies among people living with HIV (PLWH) in Portugal. This study aimed to describe the treatment strategy used in PLWH either initiating or switching ART.

Methods: Non-interventional, cross-sectional, multicenter study carried out between December 2019 and October 2021 in Portugal.

Determinants of HIV late presentation among men who have sex with men in Portugal (2014-2019): who's being left behind?

Introduction: HIV late presentation (LP) remains excessive in Europe. We aimed to analyze the factors associated with late presentation in the MSM population newly diagnosed with HIV in Portugal between 2014 and 2019.

Methods: We included 391 newly HIV-1 diagnosed Men who have Sex with Men (MSM), from the BESTHOPE project, in 17 countrywide Portuguese hospitals.

The efficiency of the EmERGE platform for medically stable people living with HIV in Portugal.

Background: The aim of this study was to calculate the cost-effectiveness of the EmERGE Pathway of Care for medically stable people living with HIV in the Hospital Capuchos, Centro Hospitalar Universitário de Lisboa Central (HC-CHLC). The app enables individuals to receive HIV treatment information and communicate with caregivers.

Methods: This before-and-after study collected the use of services data 1 year before implementation and after implementation of EmERGE from November 1, 2016, to October 30, 2019.

Efficiency of the EmERGE Pathway of Care in Five European HIV Centres.

Objective: We aimed to calculate the efficiency of the EmERGE Pathway of Care in five European HIV clinics, developed and implemented for medically stable people living with HIV.

Methods: Participants were followed up for 1 year before and after implementation of EmERGE, between April 2016 and October 2019. Micro-costing studies were performed in the outpatient services of the clinics.

A cross-sectional assessment of frailty, falls and perceptions of ageing in people living with HIV using an mHealth platform.

Objective: To evaluate frailty, falls and perceptions of ageing among clinically stable individuals with HIV, engaged with remote healthcare delivered via a novel smartphone application.

Methods: This was a multi-centre European cross-sectional, questionnaire-based sub-study of EmERGE participants. Frailty was assessed using the five-item FRAIL scale.

HIV-1-Transmitted Drug Resistance and Transmission Clusters in Newly Diagnosed Patients in Portugal Between 2014 and 2019.

Objective: To describe and analyze transmitted drug resistance (TDR) between 2014 and 2019 in newly infected patients with HIV-1 in Portugal and to characterize its transmission networks.

Methods: Clinical, socioepidemiological, and risk behavior data were collected from 820 newly diagnosed patients in Portugal between September 2014 and December 2019. The sequences obtained from drug resistance testing were used for subtyping, TDR determination, and transmission cluster (TC) analyses.

"Moving Fourth": Introduction of a practical toolkit for shared decision-making to facilitate healthy living beyond HIV viral suppression.

An extension of the UNAIDS 90-90-90 target proposes >90% of people living with HIV (PLHIV) should have good health-related quality of life (HrQoL); however, limited guidance exists. The "Health Goals for Me" framework, an individualized approach to HIV care, provides a framework to assess HrQoL. We analyzed several patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) to develop a practical toolkit to facilitate shared physician-patient decision-making.

Meglumine antimoniate combination treatment for relapsing Kala-azar after treatment and secondary prophylaxis failure with liposomal amphotericin B in two HIV-coinfected patients.

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a protozoan infection caused by and with a higher incidence and severity in HIV-infected patients due to its synergistic effect on hampering the immune response, often leading to death after treatment failure. Literature regarding the management of relapsing VL in HIV-coinfected patients is lacking. Many experts recommend a combined therapy with liposomal amphotericin B and miltefosine.

"Moving Fourth": A Vision Toward Achieving Healthy Living with HIV Beyond Viral Suppression.

Since HIV has evolved from being a fatal illness to a chronic condition, this brings new challenges relating to long-term health, as increasing numbers of people living with HIV (PLHIV) navigate their lives beyond viral suppression. This review presents the challenges facing patients and health-care providers managing HIV in Europe today. We highlight the challenges that the evolving landscape in HIV brings, including managing an aging and more diverse population of PLHIV; this requires a shift from managing disease to managing health and may best be achieved by multidisciplinary teams in the long term.

HIV-Associated Facial Lipodystrophy: Experience of a Tertiary Referral Center With Fat and Dermis-Fat Compound Graft Transfer.

HIV-associated lipodystrophy is a common comorbidity in HIV-infected patients, having a profound impact on every aspect of patients' lives, particularly when involving the face. Hence, it is of the utmost importance to evaluate the result of any potential therapies that may help solve HIV-associated facial lipodystrophy. The aim of this article was to evaluate the outcome of patients undergoing facial lipodystrophy correction surgery within our institution.

Long-Term Efficacy, Tolerability, and Renal Safety of Atazanavir/Ritonavir-based Antiretroviral Therapy in a Cohort of Treatment-Naïve Patients with HIV-1 Infection: the REMAIN Study.

Background: Boosted protease inhibitors (PIs), including ritonavir-boosted atazanavir (ATV/r), are a recommended option for the initial treatment of HIV-1 infection based upon clinical trial data; however, long-term real-life clinical data are limited.

Objective: We evaluated the long-term use of ATV/r as a component of antiretroviral combination therapy in the real-life setting in the REMAIN study.

Methods: This was an observational cohort study conducted at sites across Germany, Portugal, and Spain.

Direct treatment costs of HIV/AIDS in Portugal.

Objective: To analyze the direct medical costs of HIV/AIDS in Portugal from the perspective of the National Health Service.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of medical records was conducted for 150 patients from five specialized centers in Portugal in 2008. Data on utilization of medical resources during 12 months and patients' characteristics were collected.

The demise of multidrug-resistant HIV-1: the national time trend in Portugal.

Objectives: Despite a decreasing mortality and morbidity in treated HIV-1 patients, highly active antiretroviral treatment (HAART) can still fail due to the development of drug resistance. Especially, multidrug-resistant viruses pose a threat to efficient therapy. We studied the changing prevalence of multidrug resistance (MDR) over time in a cohort of HIV-1-infected patients in Portugal.

Antiretroviral therapy in treatment-naïve patients with HIV infection.

Purpose Of Review: This review discusses the current status of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in treatment-naïve patients. ART initiation in such patients needs to be carefully planned, as the aim of therapy has shifted from prolonging life to ensuring maintained adherence to ART and optimization of quality of life. There is a plethora of first-line antiretroviral agents available, and physicians must consider several patient-related and therapy-related factors before selecting the most appropriate initial ART.

Epithelioid Angiosarcoma in a Patient with Klippel-Trénaunay-Weber Syndrome: An Unexpected Response to Therapy.

We present a rare case of Stewart-Treves syndrome characterized by a diffuse angiosarcoma of the leg in a 22-year-old man with a history of chronic lymphedema due to Klippel-Trénaunay-Weber syndrome. He underwent limb disarticulation and medical treatment with cycles of doxorubicin, oral thalidomide and sunitinib with a very good response after 12 months of follow-up.

Abacavir versus zidovudine combined with lamivudine and efavirenz, for the treatment of antiretroviral-naive HIV-infected adults.

Background: Zidovudine, lamivudine, and efavirenz comprise a highly effective and well-tolerated triple regimen for antiretroviral-naive patients. Evaluating other unique nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) combinations for long-term viral suppression is desirable.

Methods: This multicenter, randomized, double-blind noninferiority clinical trial compared the efficacy and safety of abacavir with that of zidovudine plus lamivudine and efavirenz in 649 antiretroviral-naive HIV-infected patients.

A 42-week open-label study to assess the pharmacokinetics, antiretroviral activity, and safety of amprenavir or amprenavir plus ritonavir in combination with abacavir and lamivudine for treatment of HIV-infected patients.

The pharmacokinetics, antiviral activity, and safety of an amprenavir-ritonavir (APV-RTV) 600/100 mg b.i.d.

Six-week randomized controlled trial to compare the tolerabilities, pharmacokinetics, and antiviral activities of GW433908 and amprenavir in human immunodeficiency virus type 1-infected patients.

This study compared the plasma amprenavir pharmacokinetics of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease inhibitors amprenavir (Agenerase) 1,200 mg twice daily (BID) and the amprenavir prodrug GW433908, a formulation that substantially reduces the number of tablets per dose compared with amprenavir, at doses of 1,395 mg and 1,860 mg BID, in combination with abacavir 300 mg BID and lamivudine 150 mg BID in patients with HIV infection. Overall, 78 patients received study treatment. Compared with amprenavir 1,200 mg BID, both GW433908 1,395 mg BID and GW433908 1,860 mg BID delivered equivalent steady-state (ss) values for area under the plasma amprenavir concentration-time curve (AUC) at the end of a dosing interval (tau), lower maximum plasma amprenavir concentrations (30% lower), and higher plasma amprenavir concentrations at the end of a dosing interval (28% higher for GW433908 1,395 mg BID and 46% higher for GW433908 1,860 mg BID).