Needlesticks: Help’s here, but it’s toxic

There’s good and bad news about needlestick prophylaxis: A postexposure drug regimen exists, but it’s not well tolerated. A five-hospital study including Boston Medical Center gathered data over the past six months for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta to study the effects of the drug cocktail comprised of AZT, 3TC (lamivudine), and IDV (indinavir). Exposed workers who took the regimen for the prescribed four-week period suffered from nausea, fatigue, and headaches. Because the risk of contracting HIV from a bloodborne exposure is low about one in 250 the risks and benefits are unclear.