OBJECTIVETo understand the one-year effect of HCV/HIV co-infected patients who had received AIDS second-line antiretroviral treatment after failure virologically, on the first-line therapy.

METHODSHCV and HIV antibody positive patients who had experienced virological failure but received at least one-year AIDS first-line treatment, were recruited from May to October 2012 in Xincai, Queshan and Weishi of Henan province. 6-months and 12-months follow-up programs were carried out after the regimen had been changed to AIDS second-line antiretroviral treatment, CD4⁺ T lymphocyte count, HIV-1 virus load and HIV-1 drug resistance were performed.

RESULTSEighty-one cases of eligible patients were selected and followed by an amelioration of CD4 median at 6-month and 12-month follow-up period. Data showed that the baseline, 6-months and 12-months CD4 medians were 266 cells/µl, 275 cells/µl and 299 cells/µl (χ² = 8.214, P = 0.009). The ratio of HIV virus load suppression patients at 6-months and 12-months follow-up increased to 46.84% and 50.00%, respectively. Frequencies of HIV drug resistance also decreased at the baseline, 6-months and 12-months, with ratios as 66.67%, 26.58% and 27.63% (χ² = 29.362, P = 0.000), respectively. Ratios of patients that holding NRTI and NNRTI drug resistance appeared coinstantaneous decrease at the baseline, 6-months and 12-months, as 51.85%, 18.99% and 17.11% (χ² = 14.230, P = 0.005). At the baseline, the ratios of patients resisted to 3TC, ABC and FTC were all more than 50%, with AZT, D4T and DDI between 41%-44% while TDF appeared as 33.33%, then all of them declined to 12%-18% at the 6-month and 12-month follow-up periods. 65.43% of the patients resisted to both NVP and EFV but declined to 24%-27% at 6 months and 12 months.

CONCLUSIONHCV/HIV co-infected patients experienced virological failure of AIDS first-line therapy were ameliorated after changing to use second-line antiretroviral treatment for 6-months, but did not show constant positive effect at the 12-month end point.