1er preventive treatment for AIDS has just received the green light from the authorities in the United States.
And this decision will be a milestone in the fight against the AIDS epidemic which, according to some, is progressing and for others, on the contrary, is decreasing. So Truvada, that’s its name, has been known since 2004 to treat infected patients. Today, it is authorized in the United States for prevention, in non-contaminated people. Indeed, studies have shown that in men using a condom, it reduces the risk of infection by 44%, for example in the event of a condom breaking. And in heterosexual couples when one partner is HIV positive, it reduces the risk of infection by 75%.
But when can this drug be used?
This treatment is reserved for people who are not contaminated, but at high risk of being so. However, there is no question of abandoning preventive measures such as condoms of course, but also other measures such as regular screening and treatment of other venereal diseases.
Is this drug well tolerated?
It is a combination of 2 anti-retrovirals, therefore not devoid of side effects. The most common are diarrhea, nausea, abdominal pain and headaches. But the risk is that patients no longer protect themselves and the authorities insist on the need to continue to wear a condom. The other drawback is the cost of treatment which would be 10,000 euros per year.
This treatment has just been authorized in the United States. Do we hope to see him soon in Europe ?
Studies are currently underway, but the idea in Europe is not to take this treatment every day as has been done in the United States. French studies test taking Truvada on demand, as needed, for 3 days: the day of the risk-taking, the day before and the next day. Obviously, this notion of anticipating the risk is not obvious. Answer within 2 or 3 years!
References
FDA approves first drug for reducing the risk of sexually acquired HIV infection
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