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When AIDS first appeared in the early 1980s no drugs were available to combat the resultant immune deficiency and few treatments existed for the opportunistic infections that occurred. Over the past decade, however, antiretroviral (ARV) drugs have been developed to combat both HIV infection and its associated diseases. The purpose of antiretroviral therapy is to reduce the viral load as much as possible – preferably to undetectable levels for as long as possible. A combination of two or three different ARV drugs (cocktails) has been shown to produce the best results. Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy (HAART) is any retroviral regimen capable of suppressing HIV for many months and perhaps years in a significant number of individuals. Such is the case with triple therapy, in which three ARV drugs are utilised.
There are currently three main categories of ARV drugs:
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Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs), i.e. Zidovudine, Didanosine, Lamivudine
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Non-Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NNRTIs), i.e. Nevirapine
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and Protease Inhibitors (PIs), i.e. Saquinavir, Ritonavir
When people do not have access to expensive ARV treatment there are other alternatives and behaviours that might improve their health, i.e. plenty of rest, exercise, a good balanced diet, good stress management, a positive mental attitude, social support and alternative treatment options (i.e. traditional healers, aromatherapy, etc.).
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