The protease inhibitors are a potent, durable class of antiretroviral agents
recommended as preferred initial therapy for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in
combination with a nucleoside/nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitor. These agents
play a critical role as salvage therapy in treatment-experienced patients with extensive
antiretroviral drug exposure given their high genetic barrier to drug resistance. Each
antiretroviral within this class is unique in virologic potency, drug-drug interaction
potential, pharmacokinetic characteristics and adverse effect profile. This chapter will
summarize and review protease inhibitors currently available on the market and provide
guidance for the application of their use in clinical practice.
Keywords: Protease Inhibitor, Antiretroviral Therapy, Pharmacogenomics,
Lopinavir, Ritonavir, Saquinavir, Darunavir, Atazanavir, Fosamprenavir,
Indinavir, Nelfinavir, Tipranavir.
