Comparison of Nevirapine Levels With and Without Dose Escalation in HIV-infected Patients Commencing Antiretroviral Therapy Who Are Also Receiving Rifampicin Based Anti-tuberculous Therapy

Many patients in Uganda are co-infected with HIV and TB and require simultaneous treatment for both diseases. There is a paucity of data on the complex pharmacokinetic interactions between antiretroviral and anti-TB drugs and the available data is not representative of the African setting, hence it is important that these complex drug interactions be characterized fully.

Rifampicin is a potent inducer of several liver and intestinal enzymes responsible for drug metabolism including the cytochrome P450 (CYP450) system, and p-glycoprotein (PgP, a multi-drug resistant transport protein). The non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) such as nevirapine are lipophilic drugs which undergo passive diffusion through the gastrointestinal lining. Once inside intestinal cells these drugs can be transported back to the luminal surface by PgP or oxidatively metabolised by CYP450 enzymes. Thus induction of CYP450 and PgP by rifampicin results in accelerated and more extensive presystemic metabolism of the NNRTI substrates resulting in decreased oral bioavailability. Available data suggests that rifampicin reduces the AUC of the NNRTI, nevirapine by 31% and the Cmin by 21% to 68% (Ribera 2001, Robinson 1998) respectively. While minor reductions in levels of the nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI), zidovudine have been reported (probably due to increased glucuronidation; (Burger 1993), it is generally agreed that the efficacy of the NRTIs is not affected by concomitant rifampicin use.

Nevirapine, a dipyridodiazepinone, is an inducer of cytochrome P450 and also induces its own metabolism with a reduction in the elimination half life from 45 to 25 hours on repeat dosing (Havlir, Murphy). The recommended daily dosing regimen of nevirapine for adults is 200mg twice daily. This is preceded by a two week lead in dose of 200mg once daily because of the autoinduction of nevirapine hepatic metabolism. This dose escalation strategy reduced nevirapine related rash from 48% (in the absence of dose escalation) to 18 %.( Murphy). Dose escalation of nevirapine is complex in the resource limited setting where fixed dose combinations of generically manufactured drugs are commonly prescribed. It is unclear as to whether dose escalation of nevirapine is necessary in patients on rifampicin as they already have full induction of their cytochrome P450 system provided that they have been on rifampicin for a minimum of two weeks. Furthermore, there is concern that dose escalation of nevirapine in this group of patients may expose patients to sub-therapeutic levels of nevirapine with the attendant risk of development of drug resistance.