Saquinavir para HIV

About saquinavir

Saquinavir is an antiretroviral medicine. It is prescribed for infecção pelo vírus da imunodeficiência humana (HIV). It slows the progress of HIV infection, but it is not a cure. HIV destroys cells in the body, called CD4 T cells. These cells are a type of white blood cell and are important because they are involved in protecting your body from infection. If left untreated, the HIV infection weakens your immune system so that your body cannot defend itself against bacteria, viruses and other germs. Saquinavir slows down the progress of HIV infection by reducing the amount of virus in your body. It does this by stopping the production of a protein that the virus needs to copy (replicate) itself.

Saquinavir will be prescribed for you by a doctor who is a specialist. It belongs to a group of antiretroviral medicines known as protease inhibitors (PIs). It is given alongside a number of other antiretroviral medicines, as part of a combination therapy. Taking three or more antiretroviral medicines at the same time is more effective than taking one alone. Taking a combination of different medicines also reduces the risk that the virus will become resistant to any individual medicine.

It is vital to take your antiretroviral medicines exactly as prescribed in order to maintain success and to help to prevent the virus from becoming resistant to the medicines. These medicines are usually taken for life.

Before taking saquinavir

Some medicines are not suitable for people with certain conditions, and sometimes a medicine can only be used if extra care is taken. For these reasons, before you start taking saquinavir it is important that your doctor knows:

• Se você está grávida, tentando ter um bebê ou amamentando.

• Se você tem diabetes (diabetes mellitus).

• Se você tem inflamação no fígado (chamada hepatite) ou qualquer outro problema hepático.

• Se você tiver algum problema com o funcionamento dos seus rins.

• If you have a heart problem or have been told you have a heart rhythm disorder.

• Se você tem hemofilia ou porfiria, que são ambos distúrbios hereditários raros do sangue.

• Se você estiver tomando outros medicamentos. Isso inclui quaisquer medicamentos que estejam disponíveis para compra sem receita médica, bem como medicamentos fitoterápicos e complementares.

• Se você já teve uma reação alérgica a um medicamento.
  

How to take saquinavir

• Before you start the treatment, read the manufacturer's printed information leaflet from inside the pack. It will give you more information about saquinavir, and it will also provide you with a full list of the side-effects which you could experience from taking it.

• Take saquinavir exactly as your doctor tells you to. It is usual to take two doses each day, at the same time as a medicine called ritonavir - take the doses 12 hours apart. Ritonavir is prescribed to boost the action of saquinavir. The standard dose of saquinavir is two tablets twice a day. If you have not had any treatment for HIV before, it is likely that your doctor will ask you to take a lower dose than this to begin with, and then to increase it to the standard dose after a week.

• Swallow saquinavir tablets whole with a drink of water - do not crush or break the tablets. You should take the tablets with food, so after a meal or with a snack.

• Try to take saquinavir at the same times of day each day (in the morning and evening), as this will help you to remember to take it regularly.

• Se você esquecer de tomar uma dose, tome-a assim que se lembrar (a menos que esteja quase na hora da próxima dose, nesse caso, não tome a dose esquecida, mas tome a próxima na hora certa). Não tome duas doses juntas para compensar uma dose esquecida.

Obtendo o máximo do seu tratamento

• Keep your regular appointments with your doctor so that your progress can be monitored. You will need to have regular blood tests to check how well your medicines are working. Your doctor will also check your heart rhythm, particularly when you first start taking saquinavir.

• It is important that you continue to take saquinavir and your other antiretroviral treatment regularly. This will help to prevent the HIV from becoming resistant to the medicines you are taking. Even if you miss only a small number of doses, the virus can become resistant to treatment.

• If you develop any infection soon after you start this treatment, let your doctor know. As a result of taking saquinavir, your immune system may start fighting an infection which was present before you started the treatment, but which you may not have been aware of.

• Siga cuidadosamente qualquer conselho que seu médico lhe der sobre fazer mudanças no estilo de vida para reduzir qualquer risco de danos ao seu coração e vasos sanguíneos. Isso pode incluir parar de fumar, comer de forma saudável e fazer exercícios regularmente.

• Algumas pessoas que tomam medicamentos antirretrovirais desenvolvem alterações na forma como a gordura corporal é distribuída no corpo. Isso pode resultar em mudanças na imagem corporal. Seu médico discutirá a possibilidade disso com você.

• Embora o tratamento com medicamentos antirretrovirais possa reduzir o risco de você transmitir o HIV a outras pessoas através do contato sexual, ele não o elimina. É importante que você use preservativos.

• It is not uncommon for people with HIV to feel low or even depressed, especially soon after the diagnosis has been made and treatment has been started. If you have any feelings of depression, or any distressing thoughts about harming yourself then you should speak with your doctor imediatamente.

• Algumas pessoas que tomaram medicamentos antirretrovirais (particularmente por um longo período) desenvolveram uma condição chamada osteonecrose. Esta é uma doença óssea em que o tecido ósseo morre devido à redução do suprimento de sangue. Isso leva a dores nas articulações e rigidez, e pode causar dificuldades de movimento. Se você notar algum desses sintomas, fale com seu médico.

• If you buy any medicines or herbal remedies, check with a pharmacist that they are suitable to take with saquinavir and your other medicines. This is because some remedies interfere with saquinavir and stop it from working properly. In particular, do not take garlic capsules or St John's wort.

• Se você tem diabetes, pode precisar verificar seus níveis de açúcar no sangue (glicose) com mais frequência, pois este medicamento pode afetar os níveis de açúcar no seu sangue. Seu médico irá orientá-lo sobre isso.

• Se você for se submeter a uma operação ou tratamento dentário, informe à pessoa que está realizando o tratamento quais medicamentos você está tomando.

• Treatment for HIV is usually lifelong. Continue to take saquinavir regularly for as long as your doctor tells you to, even if you feel well. This is to keep your immune system healthy.

Can saquinavir cause problems?

Along with their useful effects, most medicines can cause unwanted side-effects although not everyone experiences them. The table below contains some of the most common ones associated with saquinavir. You will find a full list in the manufacturer's information leaflet supplied with your medicine. The unwanted effects often improve as your body adjusts to the new medicine, but speak with your doctor or pharmacist if any of the following continue or become troublesome.

Importante: some people taking saquinavir have developed an irregular heartbeat. Your doctor will monitor you for any changes, but if you feel faint, or if you feel your heart is beating faster or more irregularly than normal, you should let your doctor know straightaway.

Se você sentir quaisquer outros sintomas que acha que podem ser causados pelos comprimidos, fale com seu médico ou farmacêutico para mais orientações.

How to store saquinavir

• Mantenha todos os medicamentos fora do alcance e da vista das crianças.

• Armazene em local fresco e seco, longe de calor e luz diretos.

Informações importantes sobre todos os medicamentos