PrEP And Bruising?

[dude8688]

Been taking daily PrEP now for over three months and have noticed when I knock a limb on a surface I bruise much worse than I normally would. I hit my leg into the wall the other day and it's gone so yellow and purple like a really bad bruise. Is this due to the way PrEP affects bone density etc?

[kitpig]

I haven’t come across that personally… though it may be worthwhile looking up the side effects list for Truvada

[viking8x6]

Not a known side effect of the drugs in Truvada. If the appearance of the symptom coincided with starting PrEP, here are possible connections you might want to get checked:

1. If you are taking blood thinners or medications or supplements that can have blood thinning effects, the Truvada might be boosting their effect because of a drug interaction. This group includes (in additional to actual blood thinners like warfarin and coumarin) a lot of common painkillers like aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen, as well as St. John's Wort.

2. It is possible (though not likely in this timeframe IMO) that the PrEP is causing issues with your liver or kidneys and the bruising is a side effect of that. You should be getting regular blood work to monitor for liver or kidney issues, though. If you are, I wouldn't worry about this one.

Of course, it is also possible that it is something completely unconnected that just happened to kick in about the same time.

Disclosure: I'm not a doctor or medical professional, I just know a lot about it; you should get medical advice from those people in preference to stuff you find on the internet.

[norefusal]

ive been on descovy for well over a year and havent noticed any issue w bruising 

[dude8688]

Yes, when I collect my prep every three months they screen my blood for HIV, I'm guessing they also Regularly look at my liver and kidney function too? 

[Blacoe]

Looking at the literature both emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil (the 2 component medications of PrEP) have the potential side effect/adverse reaction of causing blood disorders including low platelets. Not everyone would be expected to get these (and they're quite rare) but if you've noticed easier bruising then you should definitely go to your GP and get your blood tested.

[Sjorz]

On 5/30/2023 at 6:16 PM, dude8688 said:

Yes, when I collect my prep every three months they screen my blood for HIV, I'm guessing they also Regularly look at my liver and kidney function too? 

Where I live they test the kidney function once a year.