HIV News and Research

RSS

OraSure Technologies receives FDA approval for new in-home HIV test

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the OraQuick In-Home HIV Test, the first over-the-counter, self-administered HIV test kit to detect the presence of antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and type 2 (HIV-2).

4 Jul 2012

Annual report on MDGs shows success in some areas, but continued lack of progress in other areas, including maternal health

"An annual report card on the ambitious U.N.-led initiative known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) says that in three areas -- poverty, slums and water -- the goals have been met ahead of the 2015 deadline, but persistent gaps remain, notably in the critical area of maternal health," Inter Press Service reports.

4 Jul 2012

Study to investigate costs and benefits of home-based HIV testing in Malawi

HIV remains a huge killer in Sub-Saharan Africa; especially in Malawi where up to 18% of the population is HIV positive. Early detection of the virus coupled with appropriate treatment can enormously improve both quality and length of life after diagnosis, which is why researchers at Warwick Medical School are embarking on a study to investigate the costs and benefits of home-based HIV testing in Malawi.

4 Jul 2012

Bacterial vaginosis associated with increased risk of HIV transmission from women to men, study shows

Bacterial vaginosis (BV), a condition characterized by a disruption in normal vaginal bacteria, is associated with a more than three-fold increased risk of HIV transmission from an infected woman with the condition to her uninfected male partner, according to a study published June 26 in PLoS Medicine, VOA News reports.

3 Jul 2012

Study examines prevalence of pain among HIV patients in two Ugandan outpatient sites

Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 69 percent of HIV cases worldwide and 72 percent of AIDS deaths. A study published in The Journal of Pain showed that pain is highly prevalent among well functioning HIV patients in Africa, has a debilitating impact of quality of life, and there is a significant level of unmet need for pain relief.

3 Jul 2012

FDA approves Roche's new HIV viral load test

Roche announced today that a new HIV viral load test has been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and will be commercially available in the US later this year.

2 Jul 2012

Safer alternative to experimental gene therapy against HIV infection

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered a surprisingly simple and safe method to disrupt specific genes within cells. The scientists highlighted the medical potential of the new technique by demonstrating its use as a safer alternative to an experimental gene therapy against HIV infection.

2 Jul 2012

New Lancet issue focuses on HIV ahead of AIDS 2012 conference

This week's issue of the Lancet "has an HIV theme ahead of the International AIDS Society meeting in Washington, D.C., ... on July 22-27," a Lancet editorial states, noting, "The issue of antiretrovirals for prevention, specifically pre-exposure prophylaxis, is presently under intense debate."

30 Jun 2012

IAS president will use AIDS 2012 to say 'thank you' to U.S. for contributions to HIV/AIDS battle

Elly Katabira, president of the International AIDS Society and co-chair of the 19th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012), said he will use the conference as an occasion to say "thank you" to the U.S., VOA News reports.

29 Jun 2012

HIV therapy: Interview with Joël Crouzet, CEO of InnaVirVax

HIV therapy has traditionally been associated with antiretrovirals, which considerably reduce the amount of virus present in the blood to nearly undetectable levels.

29 Jun 2012

Stanford Medical School comment on Supreme Court ruling on health-care reform law

Today’s Supreme Court ruling on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 advances the broad effort to extend health-care coverage and control medical costs, though it raises questions about how certain provisions of the policy will be implemented, Stanford University School of Medicine experts said. Here are some initial comments on the court’s landmark decision.

29 Jun 2012

Once-daily pill for HIV is a safe and effective alternative to traditional antiretroviral regimens

A new once-daily pill combining three antiretrovirals and a booster molecule is a safe and effective alternative to two widely used drug regimens for newly diagnosed HIV-positive adults who have had no previous treatment. The findings of two large international randomised trials published in this week’s Lancet also indicate that the new “Quad” pill is faster acting, doesn’t have the neuropsychiatric side effects associated with other combinations, and could improve compliance with treatment.

29 Jun 2012

Gilead submits cobicistat NDA with FDA for treatment of HIV

Gilead Sciences, Inc. announced today it has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing approval of cobicistat, a pharmacoenhancing or "boosting" agent that increases blood levels of certain commercially available protease inhibitors, including atazanavir and darunavir, in order to enable once-daily dosing.

29 Jun 2012

AHF urges Gilead to set initial price on latest HIV/AIDS drug combination

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) announced that California State Treasurer Bill Lockyer has sent a letter to California-based drug company, Gilead Sciences, Inc. urging the company to set an initial price on its latest HIV/AIDS drug combination—which is known as the 'Quad'—that is "…sensitive to ongoing state budget difficulties," and which will also "…provide the means to keep people with HIV/AIDS alive and as healthy as possible."

28 Jun 2012

Efforts to fight illegal drugs contributing to spread of HIV, report says

The Global Commission on Drug Policy (GCDP) on Tuesday published a report titled "The War on Drugs and HIV/AIDS: How the Criminalization of Drug Use Fuels the Global Pandemic," which "condemns the drug war as a failure and recommends immediate, major reforms of the global drug prohibition regime to halt the spread of HIV infection and other drug war harms," according to the report summary.

28 Jun 2012

Miriam Hospital receives NIH renewal grant to support growth of Lifespan/Tufts/Brown CFAR

The Miriam Hospital has received an $8.5 million, five-year renewal grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support the continued growth of the Lifespan/Tufts/Brown Center for AIDS Research (CFAR).

28 Jun 2012

Gay dads may experience lifestyle shifts that could reduce HIV risk

Gay parents face many of the same challenges as straight parents when it comes to sex and intimacy after having children, according to a new study of gay fathers published in the journal Couple and Family Psychology.

28 Jun 2012

Gilead submits elvitegravir NDA with FDA for treatment of HIV-1 infection

Gilead Sciences, Inc. announced today it has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing approval of elvitegravir, an integrase inhibitor for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in treatment-experienced adults.

28 Jun 2012

Gates Foundation blog highlights work of CDC Kenya

In this post in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, editor Amie Newman, a communications officer at the foundation, highlights the work of "two HIV home-visit health workers who work with the CDC Kenya (Centers for Disease Control) to visit with a family in a remote area in the Nyanza province."

27 Jun 2012

USA Today features Q&A on Truvada's potential as prevention tool

USA Today features a Q&A on Truvada, an antiretroviral drug that a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel in May recommended be approved for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV among healthy people at risk of contracting the virus.

27 Jun 2012