A new study found that PrEP, a drug created to prevent the contraction of HIV, is showing success at mitigating the virus’ spread.
HOW THE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED
More than 650 people receiving PrEP were evaluated for the study over a period of more than 2.5 years. The average age of the participants was 37, and 99% of them were men who were having sexual encounters with men.
During the period, no new HIV infections were recorded. The report was published Wednesday in the Clinical Infectious Diseases medical journal.
The research was led by Dr. Jonathan Volk of the Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center, where the tests on the study’s participants were conducted.
WHAT THE STUDY MEANS
“Our study is the first to extend the understanding of the use of PrEP in a real-world setting and suggests that the treatment may prevent new HIV infections even in a high-risk setting,” Volk said in a statement to the press. “Until now, evidence supporting the efficacy of PrEP to prevent HIV infection had come from clinical trials and a demonstration project.”
As the study was done in a “real-world setting,” it has exciting implications and provides another layer of evidence for PrEP’s potential.
MORE OUTREACH IS NEEDED
However, as most of the study’s participants were men who had sexual encounters with men, the press release noted that the study’s researchers acknowledged that outreach is still necessary for other groups that are at a risk for HIV, like heterosexual women and men and transgender women.
HIV DRUG: WHAT IS PrEP?
PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) is a HIV prevention drug that is often recommended to be used everyday by people “at ongoing substantial risk of HIV infection” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). An important thing to note is that it is not a vaccine and even if taken properly, it does not provide absolute protection from the virus.
It is estimated that a person taking PrEP has a 92% smaller chance of contracting HIV than someone who isn’t taking the drug, which was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2012 according to TIME. Check out these infographics that the CDC made to learn more about PrEP.
