Broadly speaking, there are four main types of HIV infections: Group M, Group N, Group O, and Group P. While Group M infections are the most common types of HIV infections worldwide, Group P infections can also happen in South Africa. While the way that a Group P HIV infection affects your body is similar to other types of HIV infections, treatment can vary from person to person. Therefore, it is important to know what type of HIV infection you have if you want to treat it.
Group P HIV infections are extremely rare, and very few cases of human contraction have occurred. However, because they are a possibility, it is important to know what to do if you think you have a Group P HIV infection. Diagnosing Group P HIV requires two separate blood-antigen tests – one to confirm you have HIV and another to determine what type of HIV you have.
While the exact treatment for Group P infections may vary from person to person, antiretroviral therapy (ART) is the most effective treatment. Because of how rare Group P HIV infections are, they are often mistaken for Group M infections. As a result, they are typically treated the same way, which is often successful.
While ART is not a cure for Group P HIV infections, and no perfect cure exists, it is by far the most effective treatment. ART consists of several different types of medications that affect the body and the virus that is infecting you differently. In most cases, you will need to take two or more of the medications in ART for treatment to be effective.
Once again, while ART is not a cure for Group P HIV, it gives you the best chance to live a long and normal life.
Currently, there are five different types of medications that are used in ART. Each of these medications affects human immunodeficiency viruses differently, based on how it is affecting you.
NNRTIs, such as doravirine and efavirenz, work by attaching to proteins in your cells that HIV needs in order to replicate. When this happens, HIV cannot replicate and the disease stagnates.
NRTIs, such as abacavir and zidovudine, essentially trick the human immunodeficiency virus inside your body. It makes HIV think that it is replicating itself, but it is actually using faulty versions of the necessary building blocks, which means it cannot actually replicate.
PIs, such as darunavir and atazanavir, keep HIV from replicating by binding to protease, an essential protein it needs in order to spread.
IIs, such as cobotegravir and raltegravir, work similarly to protease inhibitors in that it prevent HIV from replicating by blocking an essential protein. Only in the case of IIs, they bind to integrase.
Fusion inhibitors, such as enfuvirtide, act as a guardian for healthy cells and keep HIV from infiltrating them.
While ART is the best and only effective treatment for Group P HIV infections, only your doctor can tell you which ART medications you will need, how often to take them, and your dosage.
It was not that long ago when any HIV infection, Group P infections included, was essentially a death sentence. While there is still no permanent cure for HIV, and you will need lifelong treatment, antiretrovirals have made it possible for people with the infection to live long and mostly normal lives. However, it is essential that you receive a diagnosis and start treatment as quickly as possible.