Perceived stress and norepinephrine predict the effectiveness of response to protease inhibitors in HIV.

Background: In vitro evidence has suggested that increasing levels of norepinephrine (NE) can accelerate HIV replication; however, the importance in a clinical setting has not been tested.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if perceived stress as well as the stress hormones NE and cortisol would predict the response to starting a new protease inhibitor (PI) prospectively.

Method: Perceived stress, urinary cortisol and norepinephrine, CD4 and viral load (VL) were measured in people with HIV before starting a new PI and six months later (an average of three months after starting the new PI) in order to determine CD4 and VL response to the PI.