GRADING
SIDE EFFECTS
GRADE 1 (Mild)
Transient (goes away after a short time) or mild discomfort; no limitation in
activity; no medical intervention/therapy required.
GRADE 2 (Moderate)
Your daily activity is affected mild to moderately – some assistance may be
needed; no or minimal medical intervention/therapy required.
GRADE 3 (Severe)
Your daily activity is markedly reduced – some assistance usually required;
medical intervention/therapy required hospitalisation or hospice care possible.
GRADE 4 (Potentially life
threatening)
Extreme limitation to daily activity, significant assistance required;
significant medical intervention/therapy, hospitalisation or hospice care very
likely.
Grading based on US NIH Division of AIDS.
Knowing what the risk of side effects are for a particular drug can help you
to make an informed decision about which drugs to choose. Where a side effect is
very common, knowing what percentage of people who needed to change therapy
because of it is useful too.
Your doctor can provide more accurate information. It is also included in the
information that you get with all HIV drugs.
Although there are slightly different details for reporting the severity of
each side effect, they are graded from 1 to 4. Grade 1 is very mild and Grade 4
is very serious – life threatening or requiring hospitalisation.
|
Side Effect |
Grade 1 |
Grade 2 |
Grade 3 |
Grade 4 |
|
Diarrhoea |
3-4 loose stools a day OR mild diarrhoea lasting less
than a week |
5-7 loose stools a day OR mild diarrhoea lasting more
than a week |
Bloody diarrhoea OR 7 loose stools a day OR needing IV
treatment OR feeling dizzy when standing |
Hospitalisation required (also possible for Grade 3) |
|
Fatigue |
Normal activity reduced by less than 25% |
Normal activity reduced by 25-50% |
Normal activity reduced by over 50%; cannot work |
Unable to care for yourself |
|
Liver toxicity |
1.25-2.5 Upper limit Normal (ULN) |
>2.5-5.0 ULN |
5.0 – 7.5 ULN |
>7.5 ULN |
|
Mood Disturbance |
Mild anxiety, able to continue daily tasks |
Moderate anxiety/disturbance, interfering with ability
to work, etc. |
Severe mood changes requiring medical treatment. Unable
to work |
Acute psychosis, suicidal thoughts |
|
Nausea |
Mild OR transient reasonable food intake |
Moderate discomfort OR intake decreased for less than 3
days |
Severe discomfort OR minimal food intake for more than 3
days |
Hospitalisation required |
|
Rash |
Redness or itchy skin on part or whole body |
Rash that breaks skin, hard or soft pimples OR light
peeling/scaling |
Blistering, open ulcers, wet peeling, serious rash over
large areas |
Severe rash, Stevens Johnson syndrome. Severe broken
skin etc. |
|
Vomiting |
2-3 episodes a day OR mild vomiting for less than one
week |
4-5 episodes a day OR mild vomiting for more than one
week |
Severe vomiting of all foods over 24 hours OR needing IV
treatment OR feeling dizzy when standing |
Hospitalisation for IV treatment (possibly also for
Grade 3) |
