A Randomized, Double-Blind, Four-Arm Study Comparing Combination Nucleoside, Alternating Nucleoside, and Triple-Drug Therapy for the Treatment of Advanced HIV Disease (CD4 <= 50/mm3)

The rapid emergence of resistant HIV strains has been observed in patients receiving monotherapy with a nucleoside analog or non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor. Use of combination therapy with two nucleoside drugs or convergent combination therapy with two nucleosides and a non-nucleoside RT inhibitor may minimize the evolution of these resistant HIV strains. Since toxicity is a major problem in patients with advanced disease who are receiving combination nucleoside therapy, alternating the two drugs may provide a way of retaining several benefits of combination therapy while minimizing the increased toxicity. Patients are randomized to receive either AZT/ddC, AZT/ddI, AZT alternating monthly with ddI, or AZT/ddI/nevirapine. Patients are evaluated at week 0 and every 4 weeks thereafter for 2 years. Pharmacologic, virologic, and macroneurologic substudies will be conducted. Patients who are already enrolled on protocol ACTG 193 will be given the option of continuing on their originally assigned ACTG 193 therapy for an additional 6 months or undergoing re-randomization to one of the four treatment arms on ACTG 193A.