Abstract
BACKGROUND: The prevalence of transmitted drug resistance (TDR) after the universal implementation of STRs is unknown in Taiwan. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of TDR in patients with HIV-1 infection, clarify the risk factors for pol resistance, and compare differences in HIV drug resistance before and after the implementation of STRs in Taiwan. METHODS: Adult patients infected with HIV-1 were enrolled in this study from 2013 to 2021. Mutations associated with drug resistance were identified using the 2019 International Antiviral Society-USA list of drug resistant mutations in HIV, and drug susceptibility was assessed according to the Stanford HIV Drug Resistance Database edition 9. A logistic regression model was used to analyze the risk factors for pol resistance, and the differences in the prevalence of drug resistance from 2013-2016 to 2017-2021 were compared using the Mann-Whitney U-test. General linear regression was used to analyze temporal changes in the annual proportion of TDR overall and by type of antiretroviral drugs. RESULTS: A total of 369 patients were included. The prevalence rate of pol resistance was 9.8% (36/369). The resistance rates to nucleoside/nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs), protease inhibitors (PIs), and integrase strand transfer inhibitors (INSTIs) were 3.3%, 6.9%, 0% and 1.8%, respectively. The patients with hepatitis C infection were more likely to have pol resistance (aHR 5.767, CI 1.232-26.991, p=0.026). The prevalence rate of pol resistance did not decrease after the implementation of STRs as first-line therapy in 2017 (11.2% vs 8.7%, aHR 1.329, CI 0.667-2.645, p=0.480), and no significant temporal changes were shown in the annual proportion of TDR overall or by type of antiretroviral drug. CONCLUSION: Our findings showed a stable prevalence rate of transmitted drug resistance despite the implementation of STRs as the first-line therapy in June 2016.