Patient safety and efficacy in using antiretroviral drugs in pregnant women: a systematic review

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) attacks human immune system by destroying CD4+ T cells, which are the main component of immune system, lowering body's resistance, so that HIV-infected patients are susceptible to other infections.HIV mainly attacks the productive age group, where half of new infection cases occur in people aged under 25.5 years.HIV affects not only an individual's health, but also households, communities, and development and economic growth of any country.The aim of the study was to investigate the safety of antiretroviral (ARV) regimen use in pregnant women.For that, a systematic review was conducted in literature related to a pre-determined theme.The literature was searched systematically using PRISMA guidelines, and the published articles were search in PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar electronic databases.After reading, 13 articles on interventions among pregnant women, neonates, and ARV drug usage were selected.Dolutegravirbased ARV therapy is safe and recommended for pregnant and lactating women.Most of the treatments consists of three ARV drugs, as recommended.