The reassurance of experience

Stavudine is a potent nucleoside analogue and a well-recognized component of highly active antiretroviral therapy. Clinical trials have shown stavudine to have a superior or at least comparable virological efficacy and immune reconstitution when compared with other nucleoside analogues. Studies have shown that the prevalence of phenotypic resistance to stavudine is low compared with that of zidovudine, lamivudine and abacavir, and any loss of sensitivity to stavudine is slow to develop and of low intensity. Stavudine has a low incidence of clinically significant adverse events, and those experienced are generally long-term, manageable class effects.