Contraceptive Used in Africa May Double Risk of H.I.V.

[alp227]

Source: The New York Times

The most popular contraceptive for women in eastern and southern Africa, a hormone shot given every three months, appears to double the risk the women will become infected with H.I.V., according to a large study published Monday. And when it is used by H.I.V.-positive women, their male partners are twice as likely to become infected than if the women had used no contraception.

The findings potentially present an alarming quandary for women in Africa. Hundreds of thousands of them suffer injuries, bleeding, infections and even death in childbirth from unintended pregnancies. Finding affordable and convenient contraceptives is a pressing goal for international health authorities.

But many countries where pregnancy rates are highest are also ravaged by H.I.V., the virus that causes AIDS. So the evidence suggesting that the injectable contraceptive has biological properties that may make women and men more vulnerable to H.I.V. infection is particularly troubling.

“The best contraception today is injectable hormonal contraception because you don’t need a doctor, it’s long-lasting, it enables women to control timing and spacing of birth without a lot of fuss and travel,” said Isobel Coleman, director of the women and foreign policy program at the Council on Foreign Relations. “If it is now proven that these contraceptions are helping spread the AIDS epidemic, we have a major health crisis on our hands.”

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/04/health/04hiv.html?pagewanted=all

[pitohui]

1. guys use this as an excuse not to use rubbers

in my humble opinion it should have been entirely predictable that this would occur

one wonders sometimes if scientists have ever met any GUYS

[Fearless]

6. +1 Exactly... the same as "abstinence", it's just an excuse not to be properly prepared.

And it's conservative ideologues who have blood on their hands.

[harmonicon]

7. care to reword that in some way that makes some sense? nt.

[socialshockwave]

10. Your sexist hate aside, this company needs to fix this now. n/t

[pitohui]

13. ignorance of human biology and psychology is not fixable by a drug company

for some guys, rubbers interfere with sensation, in addition a great many guys believe that AIDS is only transmitted man/man or man/woman, not woman/man -- i am not telling you what happens, i am telling you what MANY guys believe

if they figure there's no chance of getting stuck w. supporting a baby because the woman is on the pill or has taken the shot, they WON'T wear a rubber because in their opinion there is no benefit to them and there is a loss of sensation

it really shouldn't take anyone over the age of 12, or anyone who has any experience of human nature and human sexuality, much effort to predict this

nothing to do with "sexist hate," much to do with REALITY

what heterosexual guy in america wears a rubber if he thinks the woman can't get pregnant? even the rich and the educated ones don't, even those with billions of dollars to be sued for (like arnold swartzennegger, the former gov't of california) don't ... guys don't wear rubbers if they can find any excuse not to -- that's why they're so often getting hit w. unexpected child support expenses

if people haven't figured that out by now they need to get out in the reality-based planet a little more often, get off your couch, get out of the basement, and get involved in real sex

[Crunchy Frog]

2. Condoms usage seems like the ideal solution. Kills two birds with one stone.

[gtar100]

3. Is this just incompetence or malice?! Truly, WTF!

What kind of people are these pharma companies hiring? The people running these drug companies just don't give a shit anymore. I hope justice truly exists in this universe. Lord knows they sure need a share of it.

These poor women are suffering the consequences of money becoming the sole purpose of a company. No real human values. Sick. Just sick.

[harmonicon]

8. What the hell are you on about?

Did you miss the part about how it's a favoured form of birth control? Heaven forbid that women would have a say in that. Stupid drug companies allowing women to decide when and when not to get knocked up.

[SoapBox]

4. Outrageous...

So what would be the odds, that the injection was simply one, big, fat experiment in the first place?

[customerserviceguy]

5. The stuff used was DMPA

Or, as we call it in the Western world, Depo-Provera. It's been used here for several decades, and in countries where people practice serial monogamy and there is a fairly low incidence of HIV, it seems to work.

I'll admit, DMPA may not be ideal for the sexual behaviors everywhere, but in a monogamous relationship, it would likely be as successful as it is in most First World societies. The only 'experiment' was trying it out in a place where it was not originally developed and perfected.

[harmonicon]

9. 0 nt.

[Blue_Tires]

11. I'm having a hard time understanding this...

1. women take hormone contraceptive
2. have sex with HIV-positive men
3. are shocked that they also become HIV positive?

I know it's silly, but won't condom use or avoiding HIV contact altogether be much more effective?

[NickB79]

12. The same drug (Depo shot) is widely used in the US and Europe

And as far as I know, there have been no documented increases in HIV among Depo users in these areas.

That implies that behavior (probably less condom usage), rather than the formulation of the drug itself, is responsible for the noted increase in HIV infection.

[pitohui]

14. it's behavior and entirely predictable

if the man believes the woman can't get pregnant, he doesn't feel like humoring her by wearing a rubber -- like it or not, lots of men think AIDS is only spread man/man or man/woman and almost never woman/man so they don't see the need