New treatment strategy could greatly reduce HIV

[Laughing Mirror]

Updated Fri. Aug. 4 2006 10:44 AM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

A provocative new strategy for tackling HIV could reduce the global prevalence of the virus seventy-fold, according to a Canadian doctor who designed the theory.

The strategy would revolve around the use of highly active antiretroviral therapy, or HAART -- a treatment for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection that uses a combination of several antiretroviral drugs....However, less than 30 per cent of the people in the world who qualify for antiretroviral drugs are taking them, and more than 70 per cent are not. These are the people who are fueling the growth of the epidemic, said CTV's medical specialist Avis Favaro.

Lead author of the study, Dr. Julio Montaner, explained his theory using the analogy of paying off a mortgage. "The greater your down payment, the sooner your mortgage extinguishes," Montaner told Canada AM Friday. "We're looking at treatment here in the same way."

According to Montaner's theory, the sooner you put people in treatment, the greater the reduction of HIV transmission. "You could have a very dramatic effect on the epidemic to the point this epidemic could extinguish itself," he said.

more ...

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060803/treatment_HIV_060803/20060803?hub=TopStories

[Olney Blue]

1. In an ideal world, this would be the priority.

[Orrex]

2. Why do you hate America?

We have terror to defeat and democracy to spread and oil to steal and seas to pollute and air to pollute and soil to pollute and non-caucasians to oppress and non-males to oppress and corporate interests to protect. All of these are vital parts of the larger struggle against something or other. But, whatever it is, I know that it's important, that's for sure.

And there you go with your "ideal world" nonsense. Hmf!

:sarcasm:

[Olney Blue]

3. Silly me!

[JackBeck]

4. While we're at it, why don't we throw away everything we've learned

over the last 25 years?

Can you still transmit HIV even though your viral load is undetectable?

Yes.

When is someone infected with HIV most infectious?

Right after they've been infected and have yet to seroconvert.

What happens when someone goes on HAART before they really need to?

They can become resistant to the meds. And, I would say most importantly, then if they transmit HIV to their partner, they are transmitting a resistant strain to their partner.