POZ Community Forums
Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits => Questions About Treatment & Side Effects => Topic started by: berdache on May 12, 2008, 05:45:33 pm
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I have been having some side-effects since I started taking Atripla that weren't present prior to taking the drug (problems with sleeping, hallucinations, ringing in ears, floaters in my eyes, bone-density loss). I started Atripla last September and it has helped with lowering my viral load but i have not changed T-cell count much since I started in fact a slight drop the last blood test. Anyway, I am switching to different meds and I do have some fears since I experienced all those negative side-effects with the Atripla. My doc is putting me on a combination of Norvir / Reyataz and Truvada. Has anyone been on this combination and if so, how long have you been on the new combination? Have you had any significant side-effects? I tend to be hypersensitive to medications and have a history of allergies. Dennis dpnicely@gmail.com
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I've been on that combo, my first, for almost three months now. It's been good so far. The only side effect that I've noticed is a little skin yellowing, which faded after a few days.
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I took Reyataz/Norvir with Combivir for about three months.
I like Reyataz with the Norvir boost. I had no side effects from it whatsoever. I would still be taking it butt I have to take a proton pump inhibitor (stomach acid reducer) and Reyataz can't be taken with those types of meds.
You may well find this regimen will suit you even better than Atripla.
HUGS,
Mark
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I took Reyataz/Norvir with Combivir for about three months.
I like Reyataz with the Norvir boost. I had no side effects from it whatsoever. I would still be taking it butt I have to take a proton pump inhibitor (stomach acid reducer) and Reyataz can't be taken with those types of meds.
You may well find this regimen will suit you even better than Atripla.
HUGS,
Mark
Don't mean to hijack but I may start this combo tomorrow night or the weekend (during gay pride LB whee!). I'm going to remember this and hope I don't get any side effects! =/
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Thanks for the input, so far!! I will start the new combo this morning. It has been nice to wake up without feeling real groggy since I haven't taken the Atripla the past two nights. I also noticed the floaters have already started to diminish. I even remember my dreams which was tough for me to do with the Atripla. My ex-wife and her husband were in my dreams and I saved their lives. It was a strange dream and I was not even on the Atripla. ;D I will let you all know how the know combo goes. Take care, Dennis
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Don't mean to hijack but I may start this combo tomorrow night or the weekend (during gay pride LB whee!). I'm going to remember this and hope I don't get any side effects! =/
Good luck, Shadow -- let us know how it goes, okay?
Peter
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I just started this combo a week ago (it is my first combo). So far I haven't had any adverse reactions or side effects (knock on wood!). The only thing I have noticed is a very slight yellowing of the whites of my eyes, but it is not noticeable unless you are looking for it. All in all, so far so good. Best of luck to you!
Tim
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Thanks Tim! Today has been going great so far. It doesn't seem to effect my mood like the Atripla did. I feel fine! Dennis
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Good luck, Shadow -- let us know how it goes, okay?
Peter
Thanks Peter!
Love love love your site. -Mike
Dennis,
Keep us updated. Hope it goes good for you.-Mike
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I have been on this combo since August 2007. I have not experienced any side affects, I like it so much more than my previous meds (Kaletra and Combivir).
Good luck. I hope it works for you.
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Day 5 and I am doing great on the new combination! Thanks again for the support you all have given. I still have the ringing in the left ear, but it is not as intense and there are not as many floaters in the eyes. I am able to wake up and feel like I am alert and wide awake and have a better mood throughout the day. I can remember my dreams clearly again. Also, no more hallucinations when waking up in the middle of the night. Hope I continue to have these same benefits from taking this combo. Dennis
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That's great news, Dennis. I'm on the same meds, plus Viramune (because of partial resistance to most nukes), and also have no side effects to speak of.
Peter
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Wow I'm starting that same combo tonite (Friday, May 30th). Do you take them at night because thats when I want to take mine.
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BW -- doesn't matter what time of day you take this combo, just make sure to take it the same time each day. Also, see the following bullet from our Reyataz summary page:
"Reyataz should be taken with food, preferably a complete nutritious meal, to ensure proper absorption of the drug into the bloodstream."
http://www.aidsmeds.com/archive/Reyataz_1563.shtml
I take mine with dinner, but you could do this with any meal -- choose the meal that you eat most regularly at a set time each day.
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Well around 9pm I hade a Double Classic Single Comobo Medium sized from Wendys, with fries and a Sprite. Then around 11pm when I took all three of my pills I had ate just 2 muffins that I just looooooooooooooooooove to eat. So far so good. I'll see what the morning brings! I doubt that I'll be eatting super healthy anytime soon. Besides oatmeal, yogart, fruit and a Boost drink I usually eat what ever I'm hungry for now.
Questions: When does the side effects kick it? Is there a delayed reaction?
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Well around 9pm I hade a Double Classic Single Comobo Medium sized from Wendys, with fries and a Sprite. Then around 11pm when I took all three of my pills I had ate just 2 muffins that I just looooooooooooooooooove to eat. So far so good. I'll see what the morning brings! I doubt that I'll be eatting super healthy anytime soon. Besides oatmeal, yogart, fruit and a Boost drink I usually eat what ever I'm hungry for now.
Questions: When does the side effects kick it? Is there a delayed reaction?
I was tired for exactly 11 days and stop needing a nap a day around Day 13...I feel great! I totally passed out today but I think it was from anxiety. Everyone is different...I don't have any side effects from this combo...good luck!
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Hiya all,
I've been on Reyataz+Norvir+Truvada since two years ago, and no major complaints until now.
From time to time some heavy stomach or variable "stool quality", but nothing too complicated that cannot be easily managed anyway ;-)
I discovered drinking less coffee, eating fruits mostly with meals rather than between meals, and increasing cereals, rice, and protein (meat, chicken, tuna fish and similar), and cooking food in a simple way: not too much condiments, not too much sauces or oils or fats, helps a lot to reduce this problem.
No yellowing, no high cholesterol, triglycerides on normal values, VL undetectable since the first month, no sleeping problems..., rest of values in blood tests are normal.
Only my skin in some places such as shoulders and face is a bit dryer than usual, and, from time to time, kinda little pain in the hip and lower back similar to a mild arthritis or so, but my doc says it is not easy to know if it is meds related or HIV related or due to an inflamatory condition, or something that was there before and now is just coming out with aging... (I'm well in the 40's). Radiography and densitometry showed everything seems to be ok with my bones...
I take my pills at night, with dinner, at about 22:00 hrs. My rule is not taking them more than half an hour sooner or later than 22:00. When I am at home, I always take them at 22:00, when I am out or travelling, I manage to take them not too far from 22:00. I am already used to it and don't feel it as a problem or a factor of stress.
Hugs!!!
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If I'm not wrong I started on Reyataz+Truvada 2 years ago. My doctor never gave me Norvir not sure why. Other than sometimes noticing my eyes are a little yellow I don't have any major complaints. Last month though I had to stop taking them for about 2 weeks because my liver levels were high. That might be because I had alcohol and was sick taking theraflu as well so not a big deal. I usually take them after dinner around 9 PM. It took me like 2 months to get undetectable using this combo. I had Atripla before but sustiva doesn't play well with me :(
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Although guidelines did state you can take unboosted Reyataz with Epzicom as a front line treatment, you absolutely must have norvir with the Truvada/Reyataz combo.
I think you'll find though that specialists are recommending boosting it no matter what, as added protection against resistance and increasing effectiveness of Reyataz.
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Reyataz should be boosted with Norvir because the Tenofovir included in Viread, Truvada or Atripla causes a lesser concentration of Atazanavir (Reyataz active principle) gets in blood, so tratment efficacy might be compromised...
Check with your doctor, you should be boosting Reyataz with Norvir...
Hugs :-)
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I am thinking of starting this combo. I will discuss it with my doctor on the next visit. My question....do you only take this combo once a day with a meal....I thought it was twice a day....?
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This is a once a day combo (3 pills). I take mine in the morning with breakfast. Its been a good combo for me so far.
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Just to throw in a perspective - I've fairly recently developed three of your symptoms: floaters, localised loss of bone mineral density, and slight ringing in one ear. However I'm not on medication. As far as I know -
* Floaters are very common and are related to ageing. I developed them in each eye, about a year apart, shortly after cataract surgery at the ages of 61 & 62.
* Loss of bone mineral density is also age-related (and also affected by diet, exercise, and life-style)
* Tinnea? That I don't know much about, though it's obviously very common in the general population; there's a thread here somewhere on that topic.
I guess the point I'm making is that, when on medication, it's hard to untangle what is a) caused by mediation, b) perhaps facilitated/triggered by medication, and c) only coincidentally related to medication.
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I'll be starting on this combination in about a week and a half. While I can't say I'm looking forward to it, these threads have eased my fears greatly.
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I'll be starting on this combination in about a week and a half. While I can't say I'm looking forward to it, these threads have eased my fears greatly.
Good Luck...Keep us posted.
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I'll be starting on this combination in about a week and a half. While I can't say I'm looking forward to it, these threads have eased my fears greatly.
If your experience is like mine has been, then you'll wonder in a couple of weeks what the fretting was all about. Plus you're starting with decent numbers so you should see good results.
The Reyataz has to be taken with food, so decide on a dosing time to coincide with your most regular meal. That's breakfast for me.
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This combo is to be taken once daily, with food. I take it with dinner.
Regarding boosting Reyataz with Norvir, this should be done always when also taking Tenofovir (it is in Viread, Truvada or Atripla). Nevertheless, my doctor told me last month that some studies are being conducted in Europe to evaluate whether people who have had a very good response to this combo, could keep controlling VL taking out Norvir boost and simply using Reyataz plus Truvada. Prelimiary data seemed to be not too bad, but no conclusions will arise until the first half of 2009. She couldn't give me more information, but promised to tell me something more at my next visit in March next year.
I've been trying to find out some info in the Internet, but haven't found anything. Anyone has heard of this clinical trial or something alike about unboosted Reyataz when taking Tenofovir?
Regarding sympthoms, I think, despite of liver enzyme leves and lipids in blood, the most important thing to survey in the long term is the bone density. Since this combo is generally well tolerated and is working very well for lots of people, presumably people taking it will be doing so for some years. Bone density loss is a silent issue, so it is necessary to test once a year or every two years doing a densitometry.
My doctor recommended taking a D vitamin suplementation during winter, and to do some sports or excersise, not very intensivelly, but consistently. Also taking care of eating food rich in calcium, such as milk, cheese, butter, fish, legumes and dried fruits could help.
Hugs ::)
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Also taking care of eating food rich in calcium, such as milk, cheese, butter, fish, legumes and dried fruits could help.
Just what I needed, another excuse to eat cheese ;D
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Good Luck...Keep us posted.
Started this last night at 1030pm. I came back late from having my "last night of freedom" in case the meds have a toxic effect.
It's been 19 1/2 hours. No side effects. Nada. Zero. Zilch. I realize I have 4-6 weeks to possibly see them, but this is a great start.
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9 days into it now... not bad. Had some yellowing that one person noticed (a second person noticed "more color" but just thought I looked better because I was appearing pale for a while) and only one minor bout of the runs today as I forgot to take everything with food last night. I did call my doc in a slight panic over the yellowing, even though I did read that about Reyataz.
No dizziness.
No vomiting.
No EXPLOSIVE diarrhea.
No kidney pain.
No weird dreams.
No "IRS" (yet)
No excessive drowsiness.
No loss of hours at my job.
No loss of the ability to drive or do ANYTHING (as long as I get my meds at 8pm)
No kidding.
One dose has been 80 minutes late, but I'm probably still good :)
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My bf switched from Atripla to Truvada / Norvir / Reyataz last december.
He has had no issues with the new combo.
His reasons for switching away from Atripla were :
1) he was way too tired on it
2) despite undetectable VL and his CD4s increasing initially, they dropped significantly, from 400 to 200, after about 6 months. That was lower than what he had started with.
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9 days into it now... not bad. Had some yellowing that one person noticed (a second person noticed "more color" but just thought I looked better because I was appearing pale for a while) and only one minor bout of the runs today as I forgot to take everything with food last night. I did call my doc in a slight panic over the yellowing, even though I did read that about Reyataz.
No dizziness.
No vomiting.
No EXPLOSIVE diarrhea.
No kidney pain.
No weird dreams.
No "IRS" (yet)
No excessive drowsiness.
No loss of hours at my job.
No loss of the ability to drive or do ANYTHING (as long as I get my meds at 8pm)
No kidding.
One dose has been 80 minutes late, but I'm probably still good :)
Keep it up......stay focused right now on taking your meds on time. Take one day at a time. Think positive that the drugs are working.
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Keep it up......stay focused right now on taking your meds on time. Take one day at a time. Think positive that the drugs are working.
Still a little to go before my first CD4 bloodwork post-treatment.
I think it's safe to say I've had some minor side effects now (pain in my legs where there didn't used to be any, elevated "demonstrative frustration" when my temper flares) but I can still work and have a normal life. In a nutshell, losing those were my fear.
Two or three more weeks (I better double check that) and we'll post some results.
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The timing for your question regarding Truvada/Reyataz/Norvir could not have been better. I was diagnosed in 2001 and thank god have not had to take any meds. My lab tests last week have shown my cd4's down to 550 and vl 115K. They have been in the range of 900cd4/6000vl for several years. Doc is now suggesting I consider this regimen. I'll probably go ahead since I'm reading a lot now about the advantages of beginning AVT a little earlier. (I am resistant to all NNRTI's).
Comments?
Alan
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The timing for your question regarding Truvada/Reyataz/Norvir could not have been better. I was diagnosed in 2001 and thank god have not had to take any meds. My lab tests last week have shown my cd4's down to 550 and vl 115K. They have been in the range of 900cd4/6000vl for several years. Doc is now suggesting I consider this regimen. I'll probably go ahead since I'm reading a lot now about the advantages of beginning AVT a little earlier. (I am resistant to all NNRTI's).
Comments?
Alan
its a hard decision to start treatment....i was just there a few weeks ago....and have since started on isentress/truvada for 3 days now....good luck my friend....its get easier after the first pill...
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Thanks for the reply, Tag. Yes, today has been pretty mind boggling just trying to make a firm decision to begin treatment. It has been almost as trumatic as when I was diagnosed. Then, I read some of the notes on this site and don't feel so alone with this and actually encouraged.
I can't believe I was so stupid to get infected anyways. I lived with a partner (HIV) for 10 years prior to my "mid-life" or whatever the hell it was. DUMB,DUMB,DUMB Little ramlbling here...sorry...thanks, again.
ALAN
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My bf switched from Atripla to Truvada / Norvir / Reyataz last december.
He has had no issues with the new combo.
I have to update this. My bf ended up having a very high bilirubin level in his labs while on Reyataz / Norvir / Truvada. He just switched back to Atripla last week.
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Thanks for the reply, Tag. Yes, today has been pretty mind boggling just trying to make a firm decision to
My decision was a little easier because of my steep drop. But another thing that helped me is I tried the jellybean experiment in this lesson http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/Adherence_13703.shtml and had some good (if imperfect) results, and it helped to work out the kinks before risking resistance with meds.
So far, despite minor side effects, I highly recommend this regimen... just make sure you get all your blood work.
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I have been taking reyataz, norvir and truvada for 4 years now. After dealing with meds for almost 16 yrs, so far it's the best regimen I've been on. I take it once a day at dinner time, because sometimes after taking my meds I get a little tired. After years of being on this regimen the only side effects I had was a raise on my bulirubin which wasn't much. The other is kidney stones, which wasn't as bad as the ones I had with crixivan. It doesn't discourage me I still think it the best so far. Make sure you drink a lot of water. Especially if you are taking vitamin and calcium with it. Good luck and God bless.
Beenthere66
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How much Reyataz does everyone take? My doctor has me on 400mg with 100mg of Norvir each day. This would seem a non-standard dose. I'm also taking Viread; could this be to off-set the effect of Viread on Reyataz?
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I switch to Truvada Norvir Reyataz, from Sustiva Truvada, a week ago. Sustiva/Truvada was my first combo - i felt terrific for two months and then I felt overly tense, had constant chills. I liked the dreams, however.
I was happy to find this thread because I am worried about taking new meds but I see from all your experience it will be mostly good, with some risk of annoyances.
I do have one question:: IMPORTANT question, perhaps??
My ID who is very very experienced with HIV, said I could take this new Reyataz exactly like my Sustiva/Truvada -- that is, precise timing is NOT important. Sustiva/Truvada I took before bed, no matter what time I went to sleep - 11pm or 3am. He insisted it didnt matter and I had fabulous results. Now I planned to take new combo with dinner - anytime from 7pm to 10pm. ID said fine. But is this really a problem? I thought the Norvir boost kept these meds levels consistent.....
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Well it appears to be working :)
And my doctor agreed with the 4 hour adherance window. Here I have been beating myself up over 1 hour.
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Dear BM, the standard dose, as per treatment guidelines is 300 mg Reyataz plus 100 mg Norvir, plus Truvada.
400 mg Reyataz is indicated when not taking it with Truvada, Viread or Atripla, thus, not needing Norvir boosting.
But 400 mg Reyataz plus 100 mg Norvir could be a bit high dose, but this depends, for sure, on what your doctor is using as a treatment strategy for you. Nevertheless, consult this with him/her as soon as you can.
Rgds :-)