HIV/AIDS PATIENTS DISCONTINUE ANTI-RITROVIRAL DRUGS

A crisis appears to have rocked the acceptance of an Anti-Ritroval (ARV) drug by sufferers of HIV/AIDS, following complications arising from a new version of the ARV called Tyonex in many parts of the country.
To this end, the Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN) yesterday in Abuja urged its members nationwide to discontinue the use of the drug due to recent complications.
Addressing journalists on the issue, NEPWHAN National Coordinator, Edward Ogenyi, said the drug had caused the death of one of its members (named withheld) during the weekend.
She was believed to have died from complications from the drug, having complained of abnormal pains since she switched to Tyonex ARV.
Speaking on the crisis, the NEPWHAN National Coordinator said: “In the last few months, NEPWHAN has received numerous complaints from its members concerning an ARV drug being produced by Tyonex Nigeria Limited, an indigenous Nigerian company based in Lagos.”
Ogenyi said the complaints centred on disharmony within the body system and adverse reactions among patients who take Tyonex ARV drug.
He contended that many people living with HIV/AIDS are scared of continuing with the ARV drug produced by Tyonex Nigeria Limited.
Having given careful consideration to the complaints, NEPWHAN and other civil society partners, he said, unanimously resolved to discontinue taking Tyonex ARV from yesterday, while urging the Federal Ministry of Health to replace all existing stocks of Tyonex ARV products in affected facilities.
The association also indicted the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for the crisis.
The National Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the association, Samaila Garba, said all efforts to meet the minister were rebuffed by Chukwu who blatantly refused to see NEPWHAN executives on the issue.
They questioned NAFDAC over the registration of the drug, wondering if the certification process followed WHO directives and guidance.
NEPWHAN also queried the pre-qualification process adopted in the selection of Tyonex, demanding that such information be made public.
NEPWHAN however stressed that though the association is not against indigenous companies producing ARV drugs, its members “cannot afford to sacrifice quality.”
The states mostly affected by the complications arising from Tyonex include Lagos, Oyo, Ekiti, Delta and Abuja.
Source: Thisday