A simple doped with drug silicone ring, provides partial protection from HIV.
When worn in the women’s vagina in sub-Saharan Africa, the silicone ring doped with an experimental antiretroviral drug, reduced the risk of HIV infection by 60 percent.
The ring works by releasing a drug called dapivirine, which interferes with how HIV replicates.
The study took place in Malawi, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe, in more than 2,600 women.
Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said:
“Women need a discreet, long-acting form of HIV prevention that they control and want to use. This study found that a vaginal ring containing a sustained-release antiretroviral drug confers partial protection against HIV among women in sub-Saharan Africa. Further research is needed to understand the age-related disparities in the observed level of protection.”
The investigators found that the dapivirine ring reduced the risk of HIV infection by 61 percent in women ages 25 and older, but provided no statistically significant protection in women younger than 25 years. These younger women appeared to use the ring less consistently than other participants, based on the amount of dapivirine measured in volunteers’ blood during study visits.
via Engadget
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