Antiretroviral Therapy for HIV Infection in Adults and Adolescents in Resource-Limited Settings: Towards Universal Access

This publication is intended to serve as a reference tool for countries with limited resources as they develop or revise national guidelines for the use of ART in adults and postpubertal adolescents. The material presented takes updated evidence into account, including new ART treatment options, and draws on the experience of established ART scaleup programmes. The simplified approach, with evidence-based standards, continues to be the basis of WHO recommendations for the initiation and monitoring of ART.

The guidelines are primarily intended for use by national and regional HIV programme managers, managers of nongovernmental organizations delivering HIV care services, and other policy-makers who are involved in the scaling up of comprehensive HIV care and ART in resource-limited countries. The comprehensive, up-to-date technical and clinical information on the use of ART, however, also makes these guidelines useful for clinicians in resource-limited settings. The recommendations contained in these guidelines are made on the basis of different levels of evidence from randomized clinical trials, high-quality scientific studies, observational cohort data and, where insufficient evidence is available, expert opinion.