Beginning antiretroviral (ARV) treatment for HIV within a year of the estimated date of seroconversion (EDS) improves the likelihood of returning an individual’s CD4 count to a normal level, provided CD4s are higher than 500 upon starting meds, Reuters reports. Publishing their findings in JAMA Internal Medicine, researchers analyzed data regarding 1,119 people from the ongoing U.S. Military HIV Natural History Study to determine the effects of starting treatment before or after a year of the EDS.

Typically the debate about the ideal time to begin treatment is geared around starting before CD4s have dropped below certain levels, either 500 or 350. This new study takes a unique approach in focusing on the time passed since seroconversion.

The researchers defined a normal CD4 level as at least 900, based on previous research.

They found that starting ARVs within a year of the EDS, and with CD4s above 500, significantly improved the likelihood of reaching a normal CD4 level when compared with starting treatment more than a year after the EDS. Additional benefits included a reduction of the risk of developing AIDS, a diminished CD4 cell inflammatory state (which is linked to slower progression of HIV disease), and greater immune responses, as evidenced by an improved antibody response to the hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine.

To read a POZ/AIDSmeds feature on the debate over when to start treatment, click here.

To read the Medscape article, click here.

To read the study abstract, click here.

To read a press release about the study, click here.