St. John’s wort, a widely used herbal product, may compromise the efficacy of an antiviral drug often prescribed to treat HIV infection.
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center noted in the Feb. 12 issue of The Lancet that "when St. John’s wort and the protease inhibitor indinavir are taken together, the levels of indinavir in the blood drop dramatically."
Stephen Piscitelli, Pharm. D., the study’s principal investigator, said that "when the body eliminates the antiviral drug too quickly, there can be a loss of therapeutic benefit."
NIH researchers concluded from their study that most patients being treated for the human immunodeficiency virus should avoid using St. John’s wort—and that health professionals need to be aware of the interaction between the herbal product and indinavir.
