A monitoring board for an international trial comparing three antiretroviral (ARV) regimens has found that Reyataz (atazanavir) combined with Emtriva (emtricitabine) and Videx-EC (didanosine) is inferior to the others studied in terms of viral control. The board has ordered that patients receiving the once-daily Reyataz-based regimen be switched to another drug combination in consultation with their health care provider.

All clinical studies have a Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) that regularly evaluates the accumulating data to ensure the safety of the participants. In this case, the DSMB was evaluating data from AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) study 5175, comparing the Reyataz-based regimen to two Sustiva (efavirenz)-based regimens that included either Combivir (zidovudine plus lamivudine) or Truvada (emtricitabine and tenofovir).

According to the DSMB, of the 1,500-patient ACTG trial, people on the Reyataz-based regimen were significantly less likely to have control of their HIV than people taking the other two regimens. For this reason, all people on the problem regimen have now been alerted to the fact and will be switched to an alternative regimen.

In the United States and other industrialized nations, Reyataz is frequently used with low-dose Norvir (ritonavir) to boost its effectiveness.