Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Effectively Prevents HIV Infection

New research finds that no patients taking Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) contracted HIV, which authors say shows that PrEP—a once-daily pill regimen designed to keep patients HIV-negative—is effective in a real-world setting.

A team led by investigators from Kaiser Permanente studied 657 individuals—most of whom were gay or bisexual—testing participants for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) upon enrollment, and subsequently testing patients every 3 months.
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No participants in the study contracted HIV, although 30% contracted an STI after 6 months of using PrEP, according to the authors, who note that that number increased to 50% after 12 months. The researchers caution against drawing a causal link between PrEP and the high rate of STIs, as other variables could help to explain that connection.

Ultimately, the findings “demonstrate that PrEP can be implemented as part of routine care,” says Julia Marcus, PhD, MPH, a postdoctoral fellow in the division of research at Kaiser Permanente Northern California, and a co-author of the study.

Primary care practitioners “should discuss PrEP with patients at risk of HIV, including those diagnosed with STIs,” says Marcus. “The high rates of STIs in this population of PrEP users highlight the critical role of STI screening and treatment—including syphilis and rectal, pharyngeal, and urethral gonorrhea and chlamydia—as part of baseline and follow-up care for PrEP patients.”

The study “shows very reassuringly … that PrEP works in a real-world setting,” added lead author Jonathan Volk, MD, a physician in infectious diseases at Kaiser Permanente, in a statement. “HIV prevention in 2015 is very exciting, because we have several tools that are available for reducing risk, and PrEP is one of those tools.”

—Mark McGraw

Reference

Volk J, Marcus J, et al. No New HIV Infections with Increasing Use of HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis in a Clinical Practice Setting. Clin Infect Dis. 2015.