Safety and Efficacy Study of Prosaptide to Treat Neuropathic Pain in HIV-Positive Patients

Sensory neruopathies are the most frequent neurological complicaton of HIV infection and its treatmet with antiretrovirals. To date, there are few effective treatments, and all are symptomatic treatments for pain. Management typically involves the intiation and adjustment of pain-modifying therapies, and the adjustment or discontinuation of potentially neurotoxic antiretrovirals, thereby limiting the choice of HAART regimens. In precinical animal models,prosaptide has been shown to be efficacious in the treatment of neuropathic pain caused by a variety of different mechanisms. Hypothesis: Prosaptide will improve neuropathic pain in HIV-associated sensory neuroathies,and will be safe and well tolerated in subjects. Comparisons: 4, 8, or 16 mg prosaptide vs. placebo