Reyataz® (Atazanavir)

Who should take this?

Protease inhibitors often raise a person’s cholesterol or other blood fats. Atazanavir does not. People who have a high cholesterol level or risk factors for heart disease may want to take Atazanavir rather than other protease inhibitors.

How is it taken? / Dosage

Atazanavir comes in a capsule.  It should be taken with a full glass of water and with food.  The food helps the body absorb the drug.  The capsules should be swallowed whole.  They should not be split, chewed or opened.  Atazanavir is usually taken once a day.

Antacids, and buffered medications such as Bufferin, didanosine chewable or dispersible buffered tablets (Videx) should be taken two hours after taking atazanavir or one hour before.  People who like to drink grapefruit juice should talk to their doctors about this.

Grapefruit juice can sometimes affect how the body absorbs some drugs.

It is important not to miss a dose of Reyataz. If this happens, take the dose as soon as possible. If it is close to the time to take the next dose, skip the missed dose and go back to the regular schedule. Taking anti-HIV drugs as directed helps make them as effective as possible and helps prevent drug resistance by the virus.

Side Effects

Along with its benefits, atazanavir can cause less welcome side effects. These include:

• An allergic reaction.  Signs of this include trouble breathing, swelling of the face, throat, tongue, lips, eyes, hands, feet, ankles or lower legs, difficulty swallowing, hives or a rash, numbness, pain or tingling in the arms and legs, stomach pain or vomiting, extreme weakness and tiredness, fever or yellowing of skin or eyes.
• Cough
• Depression
• Diarrhea
• Difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
• Headache
• High blood sugar.  Signs of this include having a dry mouth, being unusually thirsty, having to go to the bathroom a lot, tiredness, flushing, dry skin and loss of appetite.
• Lactic acidosis.  Signs of this are fatigue, shortness of breath, muscle weakness, nausea, vomiting and stomach pain.
• Pain, especially in joints, back, or muscles

Other side effects may not be serious and may lessen or disappear with continued use of the medicine. Individuals should tell a doctor if these side effects continue or are bothersome.

Drug Interactions

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Resistance

HIV can adapt and change (mutate).  When this happens drugs that once were effective against HIV no longer are.  The virus has found a way to grow even when the drug is taken properly.  Signs of resistance are an HIV viral load that doesn’t drop. 

This is called drug resistance.  Sometimes when the virus develops a resistance to one drug in a category, it will also resist other drugs in that same category.  This is called cross-resistance.

If a person is taking atazanavir as part of their first anti-HIV regimen, he or she may still be able to take other protease inhibitors even after a resistance to atazanavir develops.

A drug resistance can develop quickly.  It is important that a person on antiretroviral drug therapy take all prescribed drugs as instructed and on schedule.