Trending News Today: Single-Tablet HIV Regimen Associated With Greater Adherence, Persistence

Patients newly diagnosed with HIV on a single-tablet regimen (STRs) have greater rates of adherence and persistence than those on a multi-tablet regimens, The American Journal of Managed Care reported. According to the article, the study authors evaluated adherence and persistence of first-line treatment following a new HIV diagnosis based on data from 13,127 patients. A larger proportion of patients adhered to STR over both the 12 months and at each 30-day interval and these patients were also more persistent with their treatment, the article reported.

An abstract presented at the American College of Rheumatology’s 2019 meeting showed that postmarket drug price changes alone accounted for the most recent spending growth on biologics, whereas manufacturers’ rebates had little impact, The Center for Biosimilars reported. According to the article, the researchers used Medicare Part B and Part D, as well as Medicaid spending data, for the years 2012 to 2016. They included all biologics with FDA approval for 1 or more rheumatic diseases through the end of 2014. Overall, the study found that drug prices, uptake, mean number of doses per claim, and annual number of claims per recipient for each biologic all contributed to spending growth, the article reported.

Individuals who experience insomnia may have a higher likelihood of heart attack or stroke than individuals who don’t have any sleep difficulties, Reuters reported. According to the article, researchers followed 487,200 individuals in China for approximately 10 years, starting when they were 51 years old on average. Overall, those who had insomnia symptoms were 18% more likely to have events such as a heart attack or stroke than individuals without any of these sleep issues, the article reported.