Clinical studies have demonstrated the potential effectiveness of ART (HPTN 052) and Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) (Gray & Kigozi/STIs) as preventative measures against HIV. This led WHO/UNAIDS to launch a Joint Strategic Action Framework (JSAF) setting a target in 14 priority sub-Saharan countries of 80% VMMC by 2016. What, then, are the potential gains of ART and VMMC interventions in […]
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Viral suppression through ART prevents HIV transmission between long-term sero-different MSM and heterosexual partners regardless of condom use
The HPTN 052 study demonstrated the preventative benefit of ART, showing a dramatic 96% reduction in HIV transmission in HIV+ participants randomized to early ART initiation compared with the group that deferred treatment. This is very encouraging. But from the perspective of a gay person considering the risk of engaging in condomless sex with a […]
How Mobile Technology Can Lead to Improved Care of STIs – by Julie Potyraj
Blog by Julie Potyraj, Community Manager, Milken Institute School of Public Health at The George Washington University e: jpotyraj@publichealthonline.gwu.edu As we move into an era where our phones do everything from lowering the temperature in our homes to arranging a ride, it comes as no surprise that these devices also offer a new way to meet and engage […]
Is increasing gonorrhoea resistance in MSM is a result of more treatment, rather than greater sexual activity?
Emerging antibiotic resistance to the last-ditch treatment of Neisseria gonorrhoeae compels health policy-makers to balance opposing concerns. On the one hand, successfully combating spread of the infection requires targeted treatment of core-group individuals. On the other, a focus on the core-group causes a rebound in core-group incidence, with maximal dissemination of resistance (Chan & McCabe/STIs (C&M); […]
Global patterns in ante-natal syphilis prevalence: Why is sub-Saharan Africa different?
‘Can a meaningful pattern be discerned in the large variations in syphilis rates over the last century?’ This is the question addressed by a recent systematic review – Kenyon & Tsoumanis (K&T) – based on published data on ante-natal syphilis prevalence (ASP) from those countries for which that data is available since at least 1951. […]
UK National Health Service (NHS) kicks PrEP into the long grass
A recent BMJ editorial condemns the NHS position that it will not consider PrEP for direct NHS funding. The decision was first communicated in an NHS statement issued in March, then confirmed by a review on 31st May, following reconsideration in response to objections raised by interested groups. This brought to an end an eighteen-month process […]
Mathematical models say: switching to HPV nonavalent vaccine brings cost benefits.
STI journal issues of nearly a decade ago, when HPV vaccination was a relatively new thing, hosted a discussion on the issue of which vaccine to choose. The choice at that time, readers will remember, was between GSK’s Cervarix 2vHPV and Merck’s Gardasil 4vHPV (Morris/STIs)*. Now, the introduction of a third alternative, Gardasil (9vHPV), seems to […]
Is the UK meeting its national guidelines for HIV testing of MSM?
The potential role of frequent HIV testing in curbing the HIV epidemic among the MSM population has long been recognized. The introduction of the strategy of ‘opt-out’ testing in the UK (2007), as in other countries at around the same time, brought a steep rise in testing, followed by stabilization (McDaid & Hart (STIs); Saxton […]
Can a case be made for opportunistic testing for Chlamydia?
Last month saw the publication of a revised Guidance on Chlamydia Control in Europe (2016) by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. This replaces the earlier Guidance on Chlamydia Control in Europe (2009) – though the 2016 document refers the reader to the 2009 one for more detailed descriptions of the epidemiology of […]
Improving Partner Notification with a new online tool from SXT Health CIC – by Anatole Menon-Johansson
Improving levels of partner notification (PN) is key to reducing the transmission of STIs in the UK, but doing so has proved to be difficult, time consuming, and expensive for many. As few as 25% of sexual health care providers achieve the BASHH target of 0.6 partners seen for every patient diagnosed with an STI […]