Efavirenz for Initial Therapy of HIV Associated with Increased Suicide Risk

A new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine examined the relationship between efavirenz use and suicide, suicide attempt, or suicidal ideation.3 The investigators analyzed data from 4 AIDS Clinical Trials Groups, antiretroviral-naïve studies between 2001 and 2010. Within each study, subjects were randomly assigned to either an efavirenz-containing regimen or an efavirenz-free regimen. Most of the study participants were men (73%) and the median age was 37 years. Notably, 32% of study participants had documented psychiatric conditions or had received psychoactive medications within 30 days of entering the study.