Successful HIV Viral Suppression With At-Home Administration

Long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (LA ART) to treat HIV saves an estimated more than one million lives per year. But in the U.S., 35% of people living with HIV did not achieve viral suppression, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data from 2022.

Researchers led by Eric Meissner, MD, PhD, at the Medical University of South Carolina aimed to create more accessibility to LA ART by designing a study that gave participants the option to self-administer the therapy at home.

The results were published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

The research team used LA cabotegravir plus rilpivirine (CAB/RPV) and enrolled 33 patients; 64% identified as Black, 73% identified as male. The median age was 46 years. The participants were given the choice to receive therapy in the clinic (n=18) or at home (n=15).

Injection site pain or soreness was found in 52% of injections over 12 months, but did not differ between the two groups. In addition, all participants achieved virologic suppression. No serious injuries were observed in either group, and patient satisfaction scores remained high in both groups.

“At-home administration of LA CAB/RPV by a healthcare provider was comparably safe, effective, and associated with high participant satisfaction relative to in-clinic administration,” the researchers concluded.

Reference

Kirk SE. Clin Infect Diseases. 2025;80(3):613-617. doi:10.1093/cid/ciae472