AIDS-related cytomegalovirus retinitis

Until recently, chronic daily intravenous infusions of ganciclovir or foscarnet were the only available treatment regimens for cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis, a sight-threatening complication that has historically affected approximately one-third of all AIDS patients in industrialized countries. In recent years, results of many randomized clinical trials of new treatments for AIDS-related CMV retinitis have been disseminated. These trials have involved four novel treatment modalities (i.e., an oral formulation of ganciclovir, a ganciclovir intraocular device, a combined intravenous ganciclovir/foscarnet regimen and a new agent, cidofovir) that offer better efficacy and/or less inconvenience than standard daily intravenous therapy with either ganciclovir or foscarnet. This review summarizes the main points clinicians should know about the available treatments for CMV disease.