NAM is launching a new, weekly email bulletin that will provide people with, or affected by HIV, with a concise, plain English digest of the very latest HIV news.
The new digest will put news stories into their context and equip you with the knowledge to understand what the latest research might mean for your HIV treatment and care.
Information on the latest NAM treatment information resources will also be included.
The bulletin will be edited by Michael Carter, NAM’s patient information and news editor.
To receive your free weekly news digest click here.
HIV treatment
Side-effects
Hepatitis C
A significant number of HIV-positive people are also infected with hepatitis C virus (often abbreviated as HCV), and these people are said to be ‘coinfected.’
The reason why so many people with HIV are also coinfected with hepatitis C is because the two viruses are caught in similar ways – particularly by injecting drug use.
Treatment can clear hepatitis C infection but it is less effective in people with HIV and a particularly poor response to hepatitis C treatment has been seen in HIV-positive injecting drug users.
There are four major strains of hepatitis C called genotypes and response to treatment can depend on which genotype a person is infected with.
It was thought that infection with more than one hepatitis C genotype might have account for the poor response to hepatitis C treatment often seen in HIV-positive drug users. However, a study has found that this is not the case. The study, involving over 200 HIV-positive former drug users with hepatitis C, found that it was very rare for somebody to be infected with more than one hepatitis C genotype and “does not explain the lower efficacy of hepatitis C therapy in this population.”
HIV prevention
A common genital infection can significantly increase the risk that a woman will be infected with HIV. South African research had found that bacterial vaginosis doubles the risk of a woman being infected with HIV. The infection is usually, but not always sexually transmitted, can be detected during a sexual health screen and is easily treated with antibiotics.HIV and the immune system
HIV alters the immune system’s response to infections in the lungs. Infections such as PCP pneumonia, bacterial pneumonia, and tuberculosis are common in HIV-positive people. A study has found an impaired response to infections has been found in some patients with a history of HIV-related lung infections.