Latitude Study A5359: Long-acting injectable anti-HIV medicine
April 30, 2019
The CWRU/UH AIDS Clinical Trials Unit announced today the opening of a new clinical trial for people living with HIV called the Latitude study. The study will be the first in northeast Ohio to use long-acting, injectable anti-HIV medicines. The trial will enroll people living with HIV who have not been successful in achieving viral suppression, also called an undetectable viral load, through taking daily pills.
While anti-HIV medicines have allowed many people living with HIV to achieve an undetectable viral load, some people have not been able to adhere to taking pills on a daily basis. The Latitude study will see whether providing these people with their anti-HIV medicines in monthly injections instead of in daily pill form will help them achieve an undetectable viral load.
The two long-acting, injectable anti-HIV medicines used in the trial, cabotegravir and rilpivirine, are still in clinical trials to determine their safety and effectiveness. At a recent conference, preliminary results of two large clinical trials showed that the two monthly injectable medicines were equally effective as anti-HIV medicines in pill form. The clinical trials reported a high level of participant satisfaction in receiving their anti-HIV medicines through monthly injections.
“We are very excited to bring the Latitude Study to northeast Ohio,” said Benigno Rodriguez, MD, Principal Investigator of the Clinical Trials Unit. “We know that viral suppression is crucial for the health of a person living with HIV. It is also important for the larger community, as a person who has an undetectable HIV viral load cannot transmit the virus to anyone else.”
“The Latitude Study is not just about a different way of taking medicines,” continued Rodriguez. “We will work with each participant to help them overcome any adherence barriers that they may have. It’s about treating the whole person.”
Participants do not have to be patients of University Hospitals of Cleveland. The Unit will work with a participant’s doctor and healthcare team during the study. Participants will be on the Latitude Study for up to 3 ½ years. Compensation is provided to participants.
To find out more information about the Latitude Study and other HIV-related clinical trials at Case Western Reserve/University Hospitals, go to www.clevelandhiv.org/latitude , email info@case.edu or call on the Unit’s confidential line, 216-844-4444.
Further details on the study page: https://clevelandhiv.org/latitude
and in this PDF: 5359 Latitude Trial Announcement