Stephen Parodi, MD, on Preventing Drug-Resistant HIV Infections

A new Healthline report focuses on the growing number of drug-resistant HIV strains in foreign countries, and looks at how some people using pre-exposure prophylaxis (aka PrEP) still develop resistant HIV infections. Stephen Parodi, MD, associate executive director at The Permanente Medical Group, is quoted on how to best prevent these infections.

Dr. Parodi, an infectious disease physician, explains in the article that PrEP needs to be taken regularly at proper doses. The article reported that resistance develops in two drugs used in PrEP because conventional HIV treatment uses three drugs.

“The most important takeway,” says Dr. Parodi, “is that the best way to do PrEP is for a patient to take the mediation regularly, not miss doses, and to regularly get tested so any new HIV infection is quickly detected to avoid resistance.”

Dr. Parodi is executive vice president of External Affairs, Communications and Brand at The Permanente Federation and chairman of the board of the Council of Accountable Physician Practices (CAPP).

Read the complete Healthline story here.