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HIV/AIDS
Unacceptable that people are still dying from AIDS, conference hears
Despite major strides to curb HIV infection, and boasting the world's largest ARV treatment programme, people are still dying from AIDS in South Africa...
New HIV cases and resulting deaths on the decline in SA
The rate of new HIV infections in South Africa continues to fall, with statistics showing that in 2022, there were an estimated 164 000...
SA’s HIV testing formula to change
For years, South Africa has used HIV Rapid Diagnostic Tests (finger prick – same-day testing), but the National Department of Health has now decided...
Cipla to produce anti-HIV injection in Benoni, Durban
The South African arm of Indian drug company Cipla has confirmed that a generic version of the two-monthly HIV prevention injection, CAB-LA (long-acting cabotegravir),...
Global report urges more investment in Aids war
Fully financing the HIV response in Africa to end Aids as a public health threat by 2030 will save millions of lives and improve...
Patient’s HIV remission after umbilical blood stem cell transplant
A transplant of stem cells from the umbilical cord has resulted in an American woman with leukaemia going into remission for HIV for the...
PrEP hopes boosted by anti-HIV suppository trial
Recent research showing that a quick-dissolving, rectal suppository designed to prevent HIV infection is safe could herald the start of a new “take-as-needed” era...
HIV game-change with SAHPRA approval and vaccine trial breakthrough
In what is being hailed as a breakthrough for HIV treatment in South Africa, the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) has approved...
Start planning cabotegravir injection rollout, say SA experts
There is no time to waste in planning the South African rollout of cabotegravir (CAB LA), the long-lasting antiretroviral injection approved for use in...
WHO report warns on increased drug-resistant HIV in infants
Nearly half of newly diagnosed infants in 10 countries have drug-resistant HIV, a WHO report has found.
HIV drug resistance is on the rise, with...
Britain: NICE guidelines recommend two-monthly antiretroviral injections
Draft guidance from the UK’S National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends offering the antiretroviral drugs cabotegravir and rilpivirine in England and...
UK study: HIV increases risk of multiple comorbidities
People living with HIV in the UK had an increased risk of developing multiple comorbid conditions, according to a study in Medscape.
The findings emphasise...
Coronary plaque found in more than half of HIV cases – COCOMO study
More than half of people living with HIV and suppressed viral loads nonetheless had imaging-confirmed coronary artery disease. But despite long-time use of HIV...
Long-term suppression of HIV while pausing medication — NIH study
Two people with HIV, who were able to stop taking medication for several years without becoming ill from the virus, offer clues for future...
Johnson & Johnson and global partners halt HIV vaccine clinical trial
The primary analysis of Johnson & Johnson's Phase 2b HIV vaccine clinical trial known as the Imbokodo study has been stopped, after showing that...
Fear of side-effects the greatest barrier to long-acting injectable PrEP
Fear of potential severe side effects may be the greatest barrier to long-acting injectable HIV prevention among men who have sex with men (MSM),...
An affordable, optimal second-line HIV treatment now available for low- and middle-income countries
Global health agency Unitaid and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) have announced in a statement a groundbreaking pricing agreement with pharmaceutical company Hetero...
COVID-19 not a risk factor for moderate HIV-positive patients — SA study
HIV is not a risk factor for moderate or severe COVID-19 disease, neither is it a risk factor for mortality, found a South Africaa...
England on track to achieve elimination of HIV transmission by 2030
The annual number of new HIV infections among men who have sex with men in England is likely to have fallen dramatically, from 2,770...
High rates of cervical cancer found in women living with HIV
Spotlight reports that a study recently published in The Lancet medical journal found that women living with HIV made up an estimated 63.4% of...
A blood test to find those at high risk of TB in people living with HIV
Researchers from the South African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative at the University of Cape Town, the Aurum Institute, the Centre for the AIDS Programme of...
Lenacapavir demonstrates efficacy in people with highly resistant HIV
Lenacapavir, an experimental HIV capsid inhibitor, led to rapid viral load reduction in highly treatment-experienced people with multidrug-resistant virus, according to a study presented...
A rapid review of CROI 2021 Virtual
Dr Paul Sax, a contributing editor at the NEJM Journal Watch Infectious Diseases writes:
For a few years in the early 2010s, the Conference on...
Significant increase in taking HIV meds using home delivery model in SA
Home delivery of HIV medicines in South Africa significantly increased viral suppression compared to those who received clinical care, according to a study by...
First-in-human clinical trial confirms new HIV vaccine approach
A phase 1 clinical trial testing a novel vaccine approach to prevent HIV has produced promising results, IAVI and Scripps Research have announced. The...
Universal access to preventive drugs could reduce HIV incidence in sub-Saharan Africa
Universal HIV testing with linkage to treatment and prevention may be a promising approach to accelerate reductions in new infections in generalized epidemic settings,...
FDA approves monthly injectable Cabenuva to treat HIV
In a move that could transform HIV treatment, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved a monthly injectable medication, a regimen designed to...
Sexually transmitted LGV reaches record levels in England
Diagnoses of the sexually transmitted infection lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV) in England reached record levels in 2019, with almost all cases involving gay and bisexual...
Study's findings on rape survivors' long-term risk of HIV also has legal implications
A SA Medical Research Council study – with important legal implications – has shown that female rape survivors are 60% more likely to contract...
Respiratory problems and bronchitis more common in people with HIV
There are higher rates of poor respiratory health in people ageing with HIV than in carefully matched HIV-negative people, with symptoms strongly associated with...
Trial stopped: Long-acting injectable highly effective in preventing HIV in women
One of the most eagerly awaited HIV study findings, that of an injection every two months that can prevents HIV infection in women, became...
New HIV diagnoses among UK gay and bisexual men at 20-year low
New diagnoses of HIV among gay and bisexual men have dropped to their lowest level in 20 years, according to a report from Public...
Diabetes drug may aid weight loss in people with HIV
Metformin, a drug used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, may have a role in reversing weight gain in people with HIV on...
Meta-analysis shows lower incidence of prostate cancer in men living with HIV
Rates of prostate cancer are approximately 25% lower among men living with HIV compared to men in the general population, Aidsmap reports a research...
WHO: Meta-analysis as to optimal first-line HIV medication
A study published by The Lancet is set to change international treatment recommendations for people who are newly diagnosed with HIV – an update...
Islatravir plus doravirine demonstrates high potency and tolerability
Islatravir, the first of a new class of antiretrovirals, continued to demonstrate high potency and good tolerability at 96 weeks when combined with doravirine...
First in vitro view reveals essential steps for causing AIDS
Accomplishing a feat that had been a pipe dream for decades, scientists have recreated in a test tube the first steps of infection by...
A switch to TAF-based cART more common than dual therapy
A consistent proportion of people with HIV are switching from tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF)-based therapy to other alternative regimens, according to a study by...
Community-based ART improves viral suppression rates in men
A study in South Africa and Uganda that compared community-based with clinic-based antiretroviral treatment (ART) services found community-based services led to significantly more people,...
Preventive drug regimen in at-risk group increases PrEP uptake — Eswatini
A promotional programme designed to educate patients on HIV risk and prevention saw use of a preventive drug regimen among at-risk groups in Africa...