Resolution of HIV-associated nephrotic syndrome with highly active antiretroviral therapy delivered by gastrostomy tube

A HAART-Breaking Review of Alternative Antiretroviral Administration: Practical Considerations with Crushing and Enteral Tube Scenarios

Selection of an appropriate antiretroviral regimen for the patient infected with human immunodeficiency virus can be challenging, as various considerations must be taken into account including viral resistance mutations, patient comorbidities, drug interactions, and the potential for drug-related adverse effects and toxicities. Treatment is further complicated when a clinical scenario arises requiring an alteration in the dosage form. Factors ranging from dysphagia to administration through an enteral feeding tube can affect decisions regarding antiretroviral dosage forms. Limited pharmacokinetic data exist regarding the alteration of antiretroviral medications from their original form. Bioavailability may vary substantially between dosage forms, which can lead to unpredictable drug concentrations. Supratherapeutic or subtherapeutic antiretroviral drug concentrations can result in increased toxicity, virologic failure, or the emergence of drug resistance. We performed a systematic literature search to review the available antiretroviral literature on the modification of solid dosage forms as well as alternative routes of administration of oral antiretroviral agents and their application to clinical practice.

Tenofovir-related Fanconi's syndrome and osteomalacia in a teenager with HIV

A teenage boy with vertically acquired-HIV presented with bone pain of 6 months duration. His antiretroviral therapy (ART) consisted of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), emtricitabine and ritonavir-boosted lopinavir. Plain X-rays showed stress fractures of metatarsals bilaterally. A dual emission X-ray absorptiometry scan revealed osteomalacia. Raised serum creatine, hypophosphataemia, glycosuria and metabolic acidosis supported a diagnosis of Fanconi's syndrome. Serum vitamin D levels were low. Discontinuation of TDF led to improvement in renal function, increase in serum phosphate and resolution of bone pain. This case uniquely features renal and skeletal toxicities with resultant metatarsal stress fractures. Children and adolescents on combined ART which include tenofovir should be screened for the early detection of proximal tubulopathy, with the measurement of renal function, phosphate, vitamin D and urinary phosphate excretion. Although uncommon and mostly reversible, recognition of tenofovir-related effects is paramount as prolonged exposure may lead to persistent renal tubular damage and osteomalacia.

Administration of antiretroviral medication via enteral tubes

PURPOSE

Case reports and other published or manufacturer-provided data on the administration of antiretroviral agents through enteral feeding tubes are reviewed.

SUMMARY

There is very limited published evidence to guide clinicians in the delivery of therapies for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection by feeding tubes, especially crushed tablets and capsule contents. A search of the primary literature (through February 2012) identified a total of nine articles describing the delivery of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) agents via gastrostomy (G), jejunostomy, and other feeding tubes; correspondence with pharmaceutical manufacturers yielded additional information. Most of the published evidence (from two prospective studies, one retrospective study, and six case reports) pertains to the treatment of HIV-infected children (33 of 40 cases). Although not a primary endpoint of any of the reviewed studies, viral suppression was documented in 29 of the 40 patients referenced in the reviewed articles. Manufacturer-provided information indicates that crushed darunavir tablets in suspension, as well as oral solutions of ritonavir and lopinavir-ritonavir, can be administered through G-tubes without significant loss of therapeutic efficacy.

CONCLUSION

Data regarding enteral feeding tube administration are available for 63% of commercially available oral HAART agents and are primarily limited to case reports specific to the pediatric population.

Declines in mortality rates and changes in causes of death in HIV-1-infected children during the HAART era

CONTEXT

Introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy has significantly decreased mortality in HIV-1-infected adults and children. Although an increase in non-HIV-related mortality has been noted in adults, data in children are limited.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate changes in causes and risk factors for death among HIV-1-infected children in Pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group 219/219C.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

Multicenter, prospective cohort study designed to evaluate long-term outcomes in HIV-1-exposed and infected US children. There were 3553 HIV-1-infected children enrolled and followed up between April 1993 and December 2006, with primary cause of mortality identified in the 298 observed deaths.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Mortality rates per 100 child-years overall and by demographic factors; survival estimates by birth cohort; and hazard ratios for mortality by various demographic, health, and antiretroviral treatment factors were determined.

RESULTS

Among 3553 HIV-1-infected children followed up for a median of 5.3 years, 298 deaths occurred. Death rates significantly decreased between 1994 and 2000, from 7.2 to 0.8 per 100 person-years, and remained relatively stable through 2006. After adjustment for other covariates, increased risk of death was identified for those with low CD4 and AIDS-defining illness at entry. Decreased risks of mortality were identified for later birth cohorts, and for time-dependent initiation of highly active antiretroviral therapy (hazard ratio 0.54, P < 0.001). The most common causes of death were "End-stage AIDS" (N = 48, 16%) and pneumonia (N = 41, 14%). The proportion of deaths due to opportunistic infections (OIs) declined from 37% in 1994-1996 to 24% after 2000. All OI mortality declined during the study period. However, a greater decline was noted for deaths due to Mycobacterium avium complex and cryptosporidium. Deaths from "End-stage AIDS," sepsis and renal failure increased.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall death rates declined from 1993 to 2000 but have since stabilized at rates about 30 times higher than for the general US pediatric population. Deaths due to OIs have declined, but non-AIDS-defining infections and multiorgan failure remain major causes of mortality in HIV-1-infected children.

Local tumor control and toxicity in HIV-associated anal carcinoma treated with radiotherapy in the era of antiretroviral therapy

PURPOSE

To investigate the outcome of HIV-seropositive patients under highly active antiretroviral treatment (HAART) with anal cancer treated with radiotherapy (RT) alone or in combination with standard chemotherapy (CT).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Clinical outcome of 81 HIV-seronegative patients (1988-2003) and 10 consecutive HIV-seropositive patients under HAART (1997-2003) that were treated with 3-D conformal RT of 59.4 Gy and standard 5-fluorouracil and mitomycin-C were retrospectively analysed. 10 TNM-stage and age matched HIV-seronegative patients (1992-2003) were compared with the 10 HIV-seropositive patients. Pattern of care, local disease control (LC), overall survival (OS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and toxicity were assessed.

RESULTS

RT with or without CT resulted in complete response in 100% of HIV-seropositive patients. LC was impaired compared to matched HIV-seronegative patients after a median follow-up of 44 months (p = 0.03). OS at 5 years was 70% in HIV-seropositive patients receiving HAART and 69% in the matched controls. Colostomy-free survival was 70% (HIV+) and 100% (matched HIV-) and 78% (all HIV-). No HIV-seropositive patient received an interstitial brachytherapy boost compared to 42% of all HIV-seronegative patients and adherence to chemotherapy seemed to be difficult in HIV-seropositive patients. Acute hematological toxicity reaching 50% was high in HIV-seropositive patients receiving MMC compared with 0% in matched HIV-seronegative patients (p = 0.05) or 12% in all HIV-seronegative patients. The rate of long-term side effects was low in HIV-seropositive patients.

CONCLUSION

Despite high response rates to organ preserving treatment with RT with or without CT, local tumor failure seems to be high in HIV-positive patients receiving HAART. HIV-seropositive patients are subject to treatment bias, being less likely treated with interstitial brachytherapy boost probably due to HIV-infection, and they are at risk to receive less chemotherapy.

Pharmacotherapy for human immunodeficiency virus-associated nephropathy

Approximately 10% of adult patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection have HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN). This condition, a leading cause of renal failure, is characterized by damage to specific areas of the renal filtration system. It manifests with increased serum creatinine levels, overt proteinuria, and in some patients, end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The mortality rate for HIVAN-related ESRD is high-30% within the first year of onset. Most instances of HIVAN occur in patients of African descent. Although advances in defining the pathology have been made, the optimal treatment strategy remains unclear. Potential benefits of potent combination antiretroviral therapy, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, and corticosteroids have been reported in small clinical trials and case reports. Cyclosporine is another option, but clinical experience with this agent in managing HIVAN is limited. Few conclusions can be drawn from the limited body of available evidence. Antiretroviral therapy, ACE inhibitors, and corticosteroids are possibly associated with reversal of serum creatinine level increases and proteinuria, but studies are necessary to further define the role of these agents in therapy. Close monitoring is advised when treating any patient with HIVAN.

Congenital and infantile nephrotic syndrome in Thai infants

Congenital and infantile nephrotic syndrome reported from the Eastern world is rare and might be a different entity from that in the West. In a retrospective review of 10 nephrotic syndrome in Thai infants (5 girls and 5 boys), 7 were diagnosed with congenital nephrotic syndrome and 3 with infantile nephrotic syndrome. Two had congenital nephrotic syndrome secondary to congenital syphilis. All had edema, ascites, and failure to thrive. Of the 3 patients tested for thyroid function, all showed hypothyroidism. Two patients developed renal failure. Renal tissue was examined from 4 patients from 3 biopsies and 2 autopsies; only 1 patient showed tubular microcysts. Symptomatic therapy was performed concurrently with penicillin therapy in 2 patients having congenital syphilis. Prednisolone, cyclophosphamide, captopril, and enalapril were tried in some patients, with little effect. Five patients died from respiratory failure complicated by later infection, 1 patient died from renal failure, and 4 patients were lost to follow-up. Nephrotic syndrome in the first year of life in the Eastern world is rare. Prognosis of nephrotic syndrome in Thai infants at this time is still poor.

A 20-year history of childhood HIV-associated nephropathy

In 1984, physicians in New York and Miami reported HIV-infected adult patients with heavy proteinuria and rapid progression to end-stage renal disease. These patients showed large edematous kidneys with a combination of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) and tubulointerstitial lesions. This renal syndrome, named HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN), was found predominantly in African Americans. Subsequent studies confirmed the presence of HIVAN in children, who frequently develop nephrotic syndrome in association with FSGS and/or mesangial hyperplasia with microcystic tubular dilatation. Since then, substantial progress has been made in our understanding of the etiology and pathogenesis of HIVAN. This article reviews 20 years of research into the pathogenesis of HIVAN and discusses how these concepts could be applied to the treatment of children with HIVAN. HIV-1 infection plays a direct role in the pathogenesis of childhood HIVAN, at least partially by affecting the growth and differentiation of glomerular and tubular epithelial cells and enhancing the renal recruitment of infiltrating mononuclear cells and cytokines. An up-regulation of renal heparan sulfate proteoglycans seems to play a relevant role in this process, by increasing the recruitment of heparin-binding growth factors (i.e., FGF-2), chemokines, HIV-infected cells, and viral proteins (i.e., gp120, Tat). These changes enhance the infectivity of HIV-1 in the kidney and induce injury and proliferation of intrinsic renal cells. Highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) appears to be the most promising treatment to prevent the progression of childhood HIVAN. Hopefully, in the near future, better education, prevention, and treatment programs will lead to the eradication of this fatal childhood disease.

Solid organ transplantation in HIV-infected recipients

HIV is generally regarded as an acceptable reason to exclude a potential recipient from consideration for transplantation. Most of the data in the literature regarding transplantation of HIV sero-positive individuals pertains to the time prior to the administration of Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy (pre-HAART). This data, therefore, provides little guidance for the management of HIV-positive individuals in the current era. The development of HAART has resulted in a decreased mortality. With prolonged survival more HIV-infected individual are developing end stage organ disease from co-existing conditions such as HCV and HBV, and diseases common in the general population such as diabetes mellitus and hypertension. This has lead to clinicians, researchers and patients to actively investigate the role of solid organ transplantation in HIV-infected individuals. In this article We review the literature to date in liver and renal transplantation, including more recent data in patients receiving HAART.

A novel HIV-1 transgenic rat model of childhood HIV-1-associated nephropathy

BACKGROUND

A characteristic finding of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated nephropathy (HIVAN) is the presence of heavy proteinuria, focal or global glomerulosclerosis, and microcystic tubular dilatation leading to renal enlargement, and rapid progression to end-stage renal disease (ESRD).

METHODS

We have recently developed the first HIV-1 transgenic rat model that carry a noninfectious HIV-1 DNA construct lacking 3.1 kb of sequence overlapping the gag and pol sequences, and develop many of the clinical lesions seen in HIV-infected patients, including HIVAN. To gain further insight into the pathogenesis of childhood HIVAN, we followed the clinical and renal pathologic outcome of 165 HIV-1 transgenic (HIV-Tg) rats and their respective control littermates for a period of 18 months.

RESULTS

HIV-1 Tg rats progressively developed proteinuria and renal histologic lesions similar to those seen in children with HIVAN, leading to chronic renal failure. By in situ hybridization, HIV-1 genes were detected in glomerular and tubular epithelial cells and infiltrating mononuclear cells, which also expressed the HIV-1 envelop protein gp120. The development of HIVAN was associated with the accumulation of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) in the kidney.

CONCLUSION

These data support the notion that HIV-1 plays a direct role in the pathogenesis of HIVAN, by affecting the function and growth of renal epithelial cells, inducing the recruitment of mononuclear cells, and accumulating bFGF in the kidney, even in the absence of viral replication. These rats may provide an excellent model system to study the pathogenesis of childhood HIVAN.

Human immunodeficiency virus infection and renal failure

Renal manifestations are an important component of HIV disease. Renal disease significantly contributes to morbidity and mortality in patients with HIV. Great progress has been made in identifying specific glomerular lesions and its pathogenesis. Newer antiretroviral agents offer great promise in preventing renal disease and also in patients with established HIVAN. Survival of patients with HIV and ESRD (irrespective of cause) who are receiving RRT continues to improve over the years. Acute reversible renal failure, a preventable complication, is also declining in hospitalized HIV patients. More and more physicians, who in the past were reluctant to care for patients with HIV and renal failure because of grim prognosis, are now becoming familiar with the renal sequelae and are encouraged by recent favorable results. As knowledge about viruses is expanding, the proper use of newer highly effective antiretroviral and other agents in complicated patients should further improve both the survival and quality of life in patients with HIV infection and renal disease.

Treatment of HIV-associated nephropathy

HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN) is the most common cause of renal failure in patients infected with type 1 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1). The renal prognosis for HIVAN is poor and is typically associated with rapid progression to renal death. We report a patient with biopsy-proven HIVAN who was successfully treated with corticosteroids and review the currently available evidence supporting the specific treatments of this condition. A 34-year-old African-American male with a 2-year history of uncomplicated HIV disease developed progressive azotemia despite treatment with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). He was treated with an uncomplicated 4-month course of prednisone, which improved his serum creatinine from 2.9 to 1.9 mg/dl and decreased his degree of proteinuria from 8 to 2.1 g/day. Two years post-steroid treatment his renal function remains stable. Increasing evidence supports that both ACE inhibitors and HAART are effective in preventing and in some cases of reversing HIVAN induced renal failure. In selected patients who progress despite these measures, a limited course of corticosteroid may achieve long-standing disease remissions. In general, with adequate supervision, corticosteroid therapy appears to be well tolerated and has an acceptable side effect profile. Although persuasive in view of the abysmal natural history of HIVAN, the currently available studies are subject to major methodological limitations. Appropriate randomized controlled trials are urgently required in order to further examine the efficacy, optimal timing, and potential side effects of these treatments.

HIV associated nephropathy: a treatable condition

OBJECTIVES

To describe current knowledge on the aetiology, pathology, diagnosis, and treatment of HIV associated nephropathy.

METHODS

A Medline search was performed using the key words "HIV," "nephropathy," "renal," and "kidney." A further search was performed for each of the currently licensed antiretroviral agents linked to key words "renal" or "kidney" and also using the MeSH heading "pharmacokinetics."

RESULTS

HIV associated nephropathy is a common complication of HIV in black African and Afro-Caribbean patients and presents with progressive renal failure and heavy proteinuria. As other causes of renal failure are likely to fall in incidence among patients successfully treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), HIV associated nephropathy will become increasingly prominent as a cause of renal impairment in HIV infected patients. Recent evidence suggests that HIV associated nephropathy will respond to HAART with a dramatic improvement in renal function.

CONCLUSION

HIV associated nephropathy is a treatable condition. This condition should be actively sought in HIV infected patients if they are to receive the benefits of therapy.

Resolution of organ-specific complications of human immunodeficiency virus infection in children with use of highly active antiretroviral therapy

Opportunistic infections are a major source of morbidity and mortality in children and adults infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). In addition, organ-specific complications of HIV infection, such as cardiomyopathy, nephropathy, encephalopathy, and others, contribute substantially to the morbidity and mortality associated with HIV infection. Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has produced a dramatic decline in the incidence of opportunistic infections among patients with HIV infection. Nevertheless, there is very little information concerning the value of HAART for organ-specific complications of HIV infection. In this report, we describe 3 children with HIV infection in whom the dominant clinical manifestations were cardiomyopathy, red cell aplasia, and nephropathy. HAART produced a decrease in the HIV ribonucleic acid level, an increase in the CD4 cell count, and resolution of the organ-specific complications in all patients. These cases add to our knowledge concerning the benefits of HAART for children with HIV infection.