Prince Harry commits to the fight against HIV. The grandson of Queen Elisabeth II carried out a live screening test on Facebook.
The royal family is mobilizing against HIV. This July 14, Prince Harry performed a live screening on Facebook. From presentations with the doctor in charge of the test to the result, the entire visit was broadcast to Internet users and under the gaze of photographers. Through this staging, royalty wishes to promote rapid diagnostic-oriented tests (TROD).
The video begins with an interview between the doctor and Prince Harry. The latter washes his hands before carrying out the examination. The doctor pricks her fingertip and places the blood sample in a device. A dot indicates the absence of infection, two dots a possible infection. In this case, an additional examination is performed and then an antiretroviral treatment is initiated.
Involuntary transmissions
“It’s incredibly fast,” exclaims the 31-year-old prince. Indeed, the result is delivered in a few minutes. TROD makes it easier to test for HIV, the doctor and Harry agree. “Once you pass the door, the hardest part is done”, sums up the grandson of Queen Elisabeth II.
This seduction operation responds to a real need in the United Kingdom: new HIV infections are still on the rise. One of the factors, according to the Royal Family’s Facebook account, is ignorance of his status. “Up to 17% of HIV-positive patients are unaware of their HIV status and unwittingly transmit the virus to their partners,” he explains. Prince Harry is not present by chance: he will represent his country at the International AIDS Conference, which opens in Durban (South Africa) on July 18.
One third of infections prevented by PrEP
Reducing new HIV infections thanks to Truvada in prevention is possible. It would be enough to treat 25 men for a year to avoid infection. American researchers have modeled the impact of a wider use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) within 10 years. Men who have sex with men (MSM) are the main population using it in the United States. If 40% of eligible men use it according to federal recommendations, a third of new infections can be prevented, the team concludes in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. This would require them to take one tablet of Truvada each day.
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