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Precautions
Your doctor will want to check your progress at regular visits, especially during the first few weeks that you take this medicine. Blood and urine tests may be needed to check for any unwanted effects.
Do not take other medicines unless they have been discussed with your doctor. This includes prescription or non-prescription (over-the-counter [OTC]) medicines and herbal or vitamin supplements.
You should not use any of the following medicines while you are taking elvitegravir, cobicistat, emtricitabine, and tenofovir combination:
- Adefovir (Hepsera®).
- Alfuzosin (Uroxatral®).
- Anti-HIV medicines that contain elvitegravir, cobicistat, emtricitabine, or tenofovir (e.g., Atripla®, Complera®, Emtriva®, Truvada®, Viread®).
- Cisapride (Propulsid®).
- Ergotamine medicines (e.g., dihydroergotamine, ergotamine, methylergonovine, Cafergot®, Ergomar®, Wigraine®).
- Lamivudine-containing medicines (e.g., Combivir®, Epivir®, Epivir-HBV®, Epzicom®, Trizivir®).
- Lovastatin (Mevacor®).
- Midazolam (Versed®).
- Pimozide (Orap®).
- Rifampin (Rifadin®, Rimactane®).
- Ritonavir (Kaletra®, Norvir®).
- Sildenafil (Revatio®).
- Simvastatin (Zocor®).
- St. John's wort.
- Triazolam (Halcion®).
Two rare but serious reactions to this medicine are lactic acidosis (too much acid in the blood) and liver toxicity. These reactions are more common if you are female, obese, or have been taking anti-HIV medicines for a long time. Call your doctor right away if you have abdominal or stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, decreased appetite, muscle cramping or pain, unusual tiredness or weakness, trouble breathing, or yellow skin or eyes.
This medicine may also increase your risk of developing fractures (broken bones). Ask your doctor about this if you have any concerns.
This medicine does not decrease the risk of transmitting the HIV infection to others through sexual contact or by contaminated blood. Make sure you understand and practice safe sex, even if your partner also has HIV. Avoid sharing needles with anyone.
This medicine may cause you to have excess body fat. Tell your doctor if you notice changes in your body shape, such as an increased amount of fat in the upper back and neck, or around the chest and stomach area. You might also lose fat from the legs, arms, and face.
Your immune system may get stronger when you start taking HIV medicines. Tell your doctor right away if you notice any changes in your health. Sometimes the immune system will start to fight infections that were hidden in your body, such as pneumonia, herpes, or tuberculosis. Autoimmune disorders (such as Graves' disease, polymyositis, and Guillain-Barré syndrome) may also occur.
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