Two cases of possible transmitted drug-resistant HIV: likely HIV superinfection and unmasking of pre-existing resistance

In the UK, patients undergo HIV viral load and genotype testing before they are prescribed antiretroviral therapy. The genotype test guides clinicians in prescribing antiretroviral therapy with maximum efficacy against the patient’s specific viral strain. HIV viral load escape under antiretroviral drug therapy, to which the virus was thought to be genotypically susceptible, is commonly observed in patients with poor adherence. We observed early viral escapes in two-newly diagnosed patients, during antiretroviral treatment, with different sequences compared to their original viral resistance test and who reported excellent adherence to and tolerance of their therapy. HIV superinfection with a new viral strain was identified in a patient with multiple risk factors and co-infections with sexually transmitted infections. The second patient was a case of the emergence of primary resistant virus under drug pressure. Both suppressed their virus promptly after treatment switch.