PREVENTION OF HIV-1

Prevention of HIV-1 Infection with Early Antiretroviral Therapy

Prevention of HIV-1 Infection with Early Antiretroviral Therapy

The transmission of human immunodeficiency virus can be reduced significantly in serodiscordant couples with the help of Antiretroviral therapy. The combination antiretroviral therapy decreases the spread of sexually transmitted HIV-1 virus and at the same time provides a better chance of survival to HIV-1 patients. One of the reasons this therapy is effective is because of the presence of HIV-1 concentrations in the blood and in the genital tract. Several studies have been conducted and all have proved the same result. Thus, it has been suggested that antiretroviral therapy should be used in order to prevent the spread of HIV-1 disease.

For several years, the treatment was delayed when the CD4 count remained around 200 cells per cubic millimetre but this did not prove to be effective because studies showed that those who were provided the treatment at an early stage performed better and the chances of the disease spreading was reduced significantly. Although treatment methods were discovered, they were not efficient and studies have been continuously being taken in order to determine which method of treatment is the most effective. Considering the use of the antiretroviral therapy, this was usually administered at a later stage when the CD4 count remained around 200 cells per cubic millimetre. However, although this worked, it was termed ineffective because the number of people getting affected by sexually transmitted HIV-1 virus was above 1 percent. Although 1 percent is a small figure, it can be significant when considering the population affected by HIV-1 disease. In order to increase the effectiveness of the treatment process, the treatment was also administered at the early stage. This showed major improvements as just 1 subject got infected with the virus out of over 500. ...