No increase of drug-resistant HIV-1 prevalence among drug-naïve individuals in

We reported previously that the prevalence of drug-resistant HIV-1 among antiretroviral treatment (ART)-naive individuals in Northern Vietnam was 2.9 % in 2007 and 6.2 % in 2008. To investigate the continuing trend of prevalence, we collected plasma samples from 958 individuals in Hai Phong and Hanoi in 2009, extracted viral RNA from HIV-1 antibody-positive samples, and analyzed them genetically. HIV-1-antibody prevalence was 26.8 % in injecting drug users (n =302), 13.4 % in female sex workers (n=284), 0.5 % in blood donors (n =206), and 0.6 % in pregnant women (n =166). All HIV-1 strains were CRF01_AE. Non-nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor-resistance mutations were found in two (2.0%) of the 102 successfully analyzed cases (one case with the Y181C, and one with the K101E). No nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor-resistance or protease inhibitor-resistanc