High death rate in mpox outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the midst of an mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) outbreak that has led to nearly 600 deaths, according to the World Health Organization. Unlike last year’s global outbreak, this one involves a different clade of mpox virus that causes more severe disease. What’s more, sexual transmission of this strain is playing a role for the first time, especially among men who have sex with men.

Differentiated HIV services improve retention in care

Shifting to differentiated service delivery such as fewer clinic visits, one-stop clinics and community dispensing of antiretrovirals improves retention in HIV care, a study of Mozambique’s national antiretroviral treatment programme has found.

Providing sexual health services to gay men in Kenya – where gay sex is illegal

Kenyan healthcare providers and staff at university clinics expressed a duty of care for young gay and bisexual men – even when this conflicted with their personal beliefs and when they felt ill-equipped to do so – according to a recent qualitative study.

A third of US health department websites don’t mention U=U

While almost all state health department websites in the US provide information about PrEP, 18 do not mention ‘Undetectable equals Untransmittable’ (U=U) by name. Even when U=U is covered, there are gaps in the information provided on many of these official websites.

Gene editing may not be the safest HIV cure strategy, early findings warn

Gene editing with CRISPR/Cas9 can lead to unwanted ‘cuts’ and changes in the gene sequences near to the integrated HIV genes, Dutch researchers report in the Journal of Virology. This might activate host genes that could contribute to cancer development, raising concerns about this potential HIV cure strategy.

Intimate partner violence increases a woman’s risk of acquiring HIV

A recent study suggests that intimate partner violence (IPV) increases the risk of HIV beyond what is expected for women living in sub-Saharan Africa who have male partners living with HIV. Women aged 15-24 had a 3% increase in risk when they had a partner living with HIV who perpetrated IPV, compared to women whose partner just had HIV. Men who perpetrate IPV were also shown to have higher rates of HIV.

UK experts recommend statins for all people with HIV aged 40 and over

The British HIV Association (BHIVA) has recommended that everyone living with HIV aged 40 and over should take a statin to reduce their risk of heart disease, even if they do not have raised cholesterol or a high risk of heart disease.

Less than 1% in US emergency departments are tested for HIV

Despite recommendations for universal screening, less than 1% of people attending emergency departments in the United States are tested for HIV, with no improvement in recent years, according to a report published in the journal AIDS.

Top 10 HIV clinical developments of 2023 | TheBodyPro

The top 10 HIV-related stories of 2023 could justifiably have all been about long-acting antiretrovirals, given the significance of this slowly unfolding revolution in HIV care. After some kicking and screaming, every-two-month intramuscular HIV therapy has become integrated within most clinics in the US.

Innovative HIV prevention product for women that promotes choice – dapivirine vaginal ring – gains momentum across Africa | Population Council

With use approved in 11 African countries, women can access the ring now in a growing number of implementation and pilot studies across 6 of those countries.

Progress continues to accelerate access to cabotegravir LA for PrEP in low- and middle-income countries | ViiV press release

ViiV Healthcare is committed to enabling access to cabotegravir long-acting (LA) for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Registrations have continued with the majority of regulatory approvals received in 2023 being in low- and middle-income countries. We also received European authorisation in September 2023.

It is time to streamline the global HIV/AIDS architecture | Health Policy Watch

There are many examples of organisations adjusting their work in the face of altered requirements. But never has a UN agency closed shop voluntarily. UNAIDS, at its start, pioneered UN reform. It could trail blaze again by closing its doors, say in 2030. 

South Africa, Colombia and others are fighting drugmakers over access to TB and HIV drugs | San Francisco Chronicle

South Africa, Colombia and other countries that lost out in the global race for coronavirus vaccines are taking a more combative approach towards drugmakers and pushing back on policies that deny cheap treatment to millions of people with tuberculosis and HIV.

Despite progress, adolescent girls continue to bear the brunt of the HIV epidemic with 98,000 new infections in 2022 | UNICEF

While total infections among girls aged 10-19 have almost halved since 2010 – from 190,000 to 98,000 – girls were still more than twice as likely to contract HIV last year, than boys.

Ryan White, a poster child for AIDS obscured as much about the crisis as he revealed | TIME

Ryan White’s high-profile case challenged the idea that HIV/AIDS only affected IV drug users and gay men. But the narratives surrounding White and his fight to return to school frequently distinguished between “righteous” and “unrighteous” people with AIDS.

Long-acting PrEP in Europe's fight against HIV | Medscape (requires free registration)

Europe's advances in HIV prevention strategies, including PrEP and long-acting retrovirals, bring hope amidst persistent access challenges and disparities.

Tennessee’s penalties for HIV-positive people are discriminatory, Justice Department says | NBC News

Tennessee’s aggravated prostitution statute that imposes a lifetime registration as a "violent sex offender" if convicted of engaging in sex work while living with HIV violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, the US Department of Justice says.

UNAIDS urges investment in community leadership to end AIDS | Health Policy Watch

As donors withdraw from HIV, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) chose to focus on the importance of community-led interventions to end the AIDS pandemic for World AIDS Day on 1 December.