Short-course induction with boosted saquinavir monotherapy for naive patients with late-stage infection

This study assessed the efficacy of short-course induction treatment with saquinavir/ritonavir as boosted protease inhibitor monotherapy in antiretroviral-naive patients, before switching to conventional highly active antiretroviral therapy. Twenty-eight patients were enrolled, with baseline CD4 cell counts of 26 cells/mu l and HIV RNA 5.5 log(10) copies/ml. There was a median 2.5 log(10) reduction in HIV RNA and 115 cell increase in CD4 cell counts after 4-8 weeks of saquinavir/ritonavir monotherapy. This treatment strategy should be evaluated further.