AIDS Research and Therapy (Mar 2023)

An indirect comparison of 144-week efficacy, safety, and tolerability of dolutegravir plus lamivudine and second-generation integrase inhibitor–based, 3-drug, single-tablet regimens in therapy-naive people with HIV-1

  • Lee A. Evitt,
  • Sakina Nanji,
  • Richard A. Grove,
  • Chinyere Okoli,
  • Jean van Wyk,
  • Sonya J. Snedecor

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12981-023-00507-1
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 20, no. 1
pp. 1 – 7

Abstract

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Abstract Background The long-term efficacy and safety of the 2-drug regimen dolutegravir (DTG) + lamivudine (3TC) and 3-drug single-tablet regimens recommended for antiretroviral therapy (ART)-naive people with HIV-1 (PWH) have yet to be compared directly in clinical trials. This indirect treatment comparison (ITC) was conducted to compare the durability of efficacy and long-term safety of DTG + 3TC vs second-generation, integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI)-based, 3-drug, single-tablet regimens bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (BIC/FTC/TAF) and DTG/abacavir/3TC (DTG/ABC/3TC) at Week 144 after treatment initiation. Methods A systematic literature review identified 4 trials evaluating the treatment regimens of interest in ART-naive PWH (GEMINI-1, GEMINI-2, GS-US-380-1489, and GS-US-380-1490). Safety, efficacy, and tolerability results were compared using fixed-effects Bucher ITC methodology to calculate relative outcomes. Results Rates of virologic suppression (HIV-1 RNA < 50 copies/mL, US Food and Drug Administration Snapshot analysis) and virologic failure (HIV-1 RNA ≥ 50 copies/mL) as well as mean change in CD4 + cell count were similar with DTG + 3TC, BIC/FTC/TAF, and DTG/ABC/3TC at Week 144. Serious adverse events occurred less frequently with DTG + 3TC compared with both BIC/FTC/TAF (odds ratio [OR], 0.51; 95% CI 0.29–0.87; P = 0.014) and DTG/ABC/3TC (OR, 0.38; 95% CI 0.19–0.75; P = 0.006). Discontinuations and overall adverse events were similar across all 3 regimens. Conclusions These results suggest that the 2-drug regimen DTG + 3TC offers comparable and durable efficacy with fewer serious adverse events vs BIC/FTC/TAF and DTG/ABC/3TC through 144 weeks of treatment in ART-naive PWH. These long-term comparative data support the therapeutic value of DTG + 3TC for PWH.

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