Two recent medical studies claim that antiretroviral medications could help protect healthy people from contracting the HIV virus through sexual contact. How? Just drink an antiretroviral daily! The findings claim that this could greatly cut a person’s infection risk by as much as 73%. If this is true, then humanity could be looking at a potential game-changer in the fight against AIDS.

The two studies were conducted in Africa among heterosexual couples, and they provide the first evidence that the strategy, which is called pre-exposure prophylaxis, may help both men and women. Last year, an international trial showed the drugs could cut HIV transmission among men who have sex with men by as much as 90% among those who used them consistently.

This is how the first study, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, worked:

The first study, called The Partners PrEP Trial, has been following 4,758 couples, in which one member has HIV and the other does not, in Kenya and Uganda. All couples were given intensive counseling about safer sex practices,contraceptives, condoms, and monitoring and treatment for STDs.The couples were evenly divided into three groups: one took a daily placebo pill, the second got a daily dose of the drug tenofovir, and a third was assigned to a daily combination pill with the drugs tenofovir and emtricitabine, which is sold under the brand name Truvada. After 36 months, 78 new HIV infections had occurred in the study. There were 18 in those taking tenofovir alone, 13 in those assigned to the combination pill, and 47 among those who were taking a placebo. Those who were taking tenofovir alone had an average of 62% fewer HIV infections, while those who received the combination pill had 73% fewer infections than those on the placebo.”

And this is how the second study was conducted:

The second study, called the TDF2 trial, directed by the CDC, tracked about 1,200 young, sexually active men and women in Botswana and Uganda. None had been previously infected with HIV. They were randomly assigned to take either a daily placebo pill or Truvada. After roughly three years, there were nine new HIV infections among adults taking Truvada compared to 24 in those assigned to the placebo, representing a 63% reduction in infection risk. Among those who were thought to have taken the study drugs as directed, protection was even greater, rising to 78%.

Both studies are due to be presented next week at the International AIDS Society Meeting in Rome.

[Source: Web MD]