Mullins Molecular Retrovirology Lab

  • Department of Microbiology
  • School of Medicine
  • University of Washington
University of Washington/Fred Hutch Center for AIDS Research

Citation Information

Murnane PM, Hughes JP, Celum C, Lingappa JR, Mugo N, Farquhar C, Kiarie J, Wald A, Baeten JM, Partners in Prevention HSV/HIV Transmission Study Team (2012). Using plasma viral load to guide antiretroviral therapy initiation to prevent HIV-1 transmission. PloS one, 7(11), e51192. (pubmed) (doi)

Abstract

Current WHO guidelines recommend antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation at CD4 counts ≤350 cells/µL. Increasing this threshold has been proposed, with a primary goal of reducing HIV-1 infectiousness. Because the quantity of HIV-1 in plasma is the primary predictor of HIV-1 transmission, consideration of plasma viral load in ART initiation guidelines is warranted.