Taking Other Medications As Prep.

[wood]

So one of the things I have done in the past is taken other medications for PrEP.  What I mean by this however is that they will all contain tenofovir/emtricitabine.  

 

For example.  a few months ago a friend moved away and left his bottle of atripla at my place.  I asked if he wanted it mailed to him, he declined.  In a few cases then when my truvada was running low I would take the atripla for a few days.  A similar thing happened with another friend on stribild.  

 

My main question is: Is there any harm in this? Im negative so drug resitance isnt a problem.  Yes I am taking extra medication, but I didnt suffer any side effects, so I really am not worried about that either.  Any input from others on here? 

[bearbandit]

If you're using the "as and when" protocol of Ipergay (two tabs up to 24 hours before a risk event then one tablet for the next two days), well, they haven't seen any seroconversions yet, but I personally remain wary of less than seven days a week dosing with tenofovir/emtricitabine. All combination pills that use tenofovir/emtricitabine use it at the same dosage as truvada, so in essence you're just taking truvada and a bit extra.

All that would worry me is that in atripla, for example, a double dose of efavirenz would knock most people sideways. The only ARV to watch out for is abacavir, which according to wikipedia ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fixed-dose_combination_%28antiretroviral%29 ) is only used in combinations that don't contain truvada. Abacavir carries the risk of a very nasty hypersensitivity syndrome (associated with the presence of the gene HLA*5701)

 

I'd try, if at all possible to get hold of real truvada - and don't forget all the blood-testing that fits with the PrEP protocol...

[wood]

If you're using the "as and when" protocol of Ipergay (two tabs up to 24 hours before a risk event then one tablet for the next two days), well, they haven't seen any seroconversions yet, but I personally remain wary of less than seven days a week dosing with tenofovir/emtricitabine. All combination pills that use tenofovir/emtricitabine use it at the same dosage as truvada, so in essence you're just taking truvada and a bit extra.

All that would worry me is that in atripla, for example, a double dose of efavirenz would knock most people sideways. The only ARV to watch out for is abacavir, which according to wikipedia ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fixed-dose_combination_%28antiretroviral%29 ) is only used in combinations that don't contain truvada. Abacavir carries the risk of a very nasty hypersensitivity syndrome (associated with the presence of the gene HLA*5701)

 

I'd try, if at all possible to get hold of real truvada - and don't forget all the blood-testing that fits with the PrEP protocol...

oh to be clear, I am taking truvada the vast majority of the time, on my regular schedule.  The atripla/stribild is simply used when I am running low. and I never miss dosages. 

[bearbandit]

Right... in that case I wouldn't worry about - less harmful to you than my occasional bar of chocolate is when I'm running in "under-caloria" mode ;-)

[Guest plowmeraw]

My doc told me there are some new prep treatments coming out. I think he said one was based on Tivicay. But I'd probably stick to meds that have been prescribed to you because they need to monitor your kidney function, etc. 

[disorder]

"kick and kill" isn't new... During the American Civil war physicians realized that morphine did more than ease suffering,It also exacerbated infection or potential infections. During this period amputation was a viable life saving procedure in most cases. Morphine was comonly used to ease pain but also as a means to bring potential infection of open wounds to the surface, Those wounds were treated failry succesfully with alcohol and leaches.

[rawfuckr]

So one of the things I have done in the past is taken other medications for PrEP.  What I mean by this however is that they will all contain tenofovir/emtricitabine.  

 

For example.  a few months ago a friend moved away and left his bottle of atripla at my place.  I asked if he wanted it mailed to him, he declined.  In a few cases then when my truvada was running low I would take the atripla for a few days.  A similar thing happened with another friend on stribild.  

 

My main question is: Is there any harm in this? Im negative so drug resitance isnt a problem.  Yes I am taking extra medication, but I didnt suffer any side effects, so I really am not worried about that either.  Any input from others on here? 

It's with all likelihood absolutely fine. Actually better than Truvada alone. The reason for Truvada only PrEP is cost and side effects... Some people suggest poz guys on meds can't get reinfected because they are effectifly on a PrEP regimen.