Taking anti-depressants with Kaletra??

[markaj]

After seeing a Psychiatrist this afternoon it looks like I'll be prescribed an antidepressant tomorrow, either 20mg Escitalopram daily or 40mg Citalopram daily. She knows I'm on Kaletra and Truvada and didn't seem that worried about interactions. I'm not so confident though.  I've checked some online drug interactions checkers and some (not all annoyingly just to add to my uncertainty) say that the Ritonavir in Kaletra will boost either antidepressant level to unsafe levels.  Does anybody know if this is the case?  If so are there actually any antidepressants I can safely take with Kaletra?  Thanks.

[Miss Philicia]

I was on Kaletra as soon as it was FDA approved 7 years ago, and was on it for 5 years.  During that time I must have cycled through 4 different SSRI class anti-depressants with no ill effect.  If you are wary of a possible reaction why aren't you coordinating this with your HIV specialist -- he/she should be able to calm any worries you may have with this.  As long as your HIV specialist is aware that you are going on this SSRI he/she can monitor you at first to look for any trouble (though most assuredly there will be none so don't worry).

The amount of Ritonavir (Norvir) in Kaletra I would assume is similar to the booster amounts used in other regimens, and I find it doubtful that there's any appreciable interaction.  Ritonavir is so common as a booster in many regimens (I currently boost my Prezista with Norvir) and SO many HIV-ers take SSRI class anti-depressants it would be a huge issue if it was interacting all over the place.

[markaj]

Thanks for the reply Philly.  That's really reassuring, cheers.  My HIV Specialist is a bit of a no go at the moment to be honest.   I've got to see her next on 9/26 so will mention it then.