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d4T /Stavudine/Zerit belongs to the category of HIV medications called Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs) . The chemicals in these medicines prevent the AIDS virus from infecting healthy cells in the body. These chemicals attack reverse transcriptase, an HIV enzyme , which produces new viruses which spread in the body. Other similar drugs are ddl (Videx) , ddc (Hivid), AZT (Retrovir) and 3TC(Epivir). However, the cells which are already infected by the virus are not cured by NRTIs.

Zerit is manufactured by Bristol-Myers Squib and was approved for the treatment of  HIV by Food and Drug Administration in USA in 1994. It was approved for AIDS treatment in Europe in 1996. Generic versions of  d4T are manufactured by  Cipla, India (Stavir), Ranbaxy (Virostav / Avostav) , Genixpharma (Stag) and Aurobindo Pharma (Stavex).

The standard dosage of d4T medicines prescribed depends on the weight of the person. For a person who weighs more than 60kg, a dosage of  40 mg  is taken twice a day. The dosage of  30 mg  is to be taken twice a day if the body weight is less than 60 kg. It is available in both capsule and powder form. The powder is soluble in water. In case of  side effects or persons with kidney problems, the dosage can be reduced further to 15-20 mg.

The most common side effects of  d4T is peripheral neuropathy, which can sometimes be eliminated by prescribing a lower dosage of  the medicine. About 20% of patients will suffer from peripheral neuropathy. The condition of patients who already suffer from peripheral neuropathy will worsen.  Less common side effects of  d4T are pain in the stomach area due to pancreatitis.

Long term usage of  d4T may cause loss of tissue on the face resulting in a sunken look. It may also cause build up of fat around the waist causing a pot belly and the fat levels in the blood will also increase..