HIV Ireland
NewsDesk Weekly
6 November 2015
HIV
HPSC - Weekly HIV & STI Report - Week 44, 2015
Latest data from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre show 6 new cases for week 44-2015, bringing the total to 404 HIV new notifications for 2015 to date.
UK: Law Commission considers HIV criminalisation in great depth, but recommends no change for HIV/STI prosecutions in England & Wales, pending a wider review
HIV Justice, 9 November 2015
The Law Commission of England and Wales has now published its report containing their final recommendations on HIV criminal transmission to the UK Government.
Gay men need clear information about ‘chemsex’, not messages about morality
The Guardian, 10 November 2015
According to the author of this article, the majority of gay men are aware of the dangers of chemsex and have good knowledge about HIV and STIs prevention, but they do not automatically accept public health messages.
See also:
Recovering From Meth, Rebuilding a Sex Life
The Body, 30 September 2015
The Sun's HIV Hollywood Actor Story Is An 'Insidious Headline Grab', Campaigners Say
The Huffington Post, 11 November 2015
Social media and HIV campaigners react to the Sun’s headline.
The Hollywood actor with HIV deserves everything he gets – and worse
The Mirror, 11 November 2015
Susie Boniface, columnist for Mirror Online, speaks her mind about the recent news of the Hollywood actor rumoured to be HIV-positive.
Hollywood actor 'with HIV': How the media should be responsibly reporting
UK Independent, 13 November 2015
Following The Sun's front page story on an apparent "HIV panic", sexual health experts speak about how to effectively report without stigmatising the condition.
We can’t go back to the deadly HIV stigma of the 1980s
The Guardian, 11 November 2015
The combination of the words ‘HIV’ and ‘panic’ in newspapers headlines shows how prejudice is still alive and is perpetuating stigma while undermining the efforts to curb HIV.
Got HIV and Want to Avoid Jail? There's an App for That — Created in St. Louis
Riverfront Times, 18 September 2015
Missouri HIV advocate Aaron Laxton has been working to develop the IDisclose app that will allow an HIV-positive person to disclose his status and ask a sexual partner to acknowledge it digitally.
How one activist is spearheading PrEP awareness in the United Kingdom
HIV Equal, 9 November 2015
Greg Owen is a UK activist campaigning among MSM for PrEP awareness and accessibility. So far only one clinic in the UK is officially authorized to distribute PrEP, and many people resort to buy the medication online without the benefit of regular monitoring, health improvement interventions and screening for other STIs.
How do we maximise global HIV treatment access? IAPAC Care Continuum Guidelines make recommendations
Aidsmap, 9 November 2015
IAPAC, the International Association of Practitioners in AIDS Care, has issued a set of guidelines to establish the best practices to ensure that as many people living with HIV as possible are diagnosed, cared for, receive treatment and achieve undetectable viral loads.
PrEP is a game changer in HIV prevention, but why isn’t it available to women?
The F word, 7 November 2015
The author of this article believes PrEP is an important and effective HIV prevention tool, according to the trial results. So why is the NHS hesitating to offer it to women?
On Scruff, Coming Out About HIV Prevention Just Got a Little Bit Easier
The Body, 13 November 2015
Scruff, a mobile hookup app, has unveiled new profile options that will allow users to disclose their safer-sex practices more easily and filter profiles based on their HIV prevention preferences.
'When do I disclose my HIV status?'
IOL, 4 September 2015
Question: I am HIV-positive, but after taking HIV medication for the past few years, my viral load is undetectable. I wonder if you think I should be required to disclose my HIV status to a partner or if, because I'm undetectable, is it OK for me to keep it to myself? Opinions on HIV disclosure, US laws, stigma and criminalisation.
Lipodystrophy Today: An HIV Doc on Causes, Treatment Options and Long-Term Survival
The Body, 5 November 2015
An HIV clinician describes the management of HIV metabolic effects with a particular focus on Lipodystrophy.
'HIV Is Like Diabetes'? Or So They Say
Poz, 1 November 2015
How much sense does the common comparison between HIV and diabetes actually make?
Tackling Today's HIV Medication Side Effects
The Body, 9 November 2015
Even though HIV treatment is now very effective and has fewer side effects than ever before, still the medications can create various problems. Here is some advice on how to manage.
Struggling to Find an HIV Drug Regimen That Fits
The Body, 5 November 2015
HIV medications have evolved since the ‘80s when the side effects were very severe. Nowadays we have various more tolerable treatment options, but it is still difficult to find the right combination of drugs that will suppress the virus and cause minimal side effects.
What should I know about living with HIV and taking nutritional supplements?
Poz, 15 September 2015
People living with HIV need to monitor their nutrition carefully as they absorb lower levels of the various natural vitamins and other nutrients found in food.
Does low-level HIV viral load raise the risk of disease progression and co-morbidities?
Aidsmap, 9 November 2015
People living with HIV who have a detectable but low viral load may continue to have a higher risk of AIDS-related events, but they are not likely to experience serious co-morbidities including heart, liver and kidney disease.
Women Die Younger Than Men from HIV in U.S.
Scientific American, 10 November 2015
Nearly one in four people living with HIV in the US are women. This infographic suggests that the long-standing gap may in part reflect differences in race among men and women with HIV, particularly as concerns access to health care.
8 modern advancements in the struggle against HIV
Spectrum Sun Times, 9 November 2015
When the struggle is hard-won and the costs are high, it’s important to reflect on all the good and the progress that’s been made. These advancements are as much social as they are scientific.
5 things to know about the new HIV treatment
Formulary Journal, 10 November 2015
Details of the new HIV drug recently approved by the FDA.
STIs
CDC: Gonorrhea becoming more resistant to one antibiotic
UPI, 4 November 2015
An antibiotic treatment for gonorrhoea is losing its effectiveness, although researchers at the CDC say that, while this is cause for concern, this drug is not the only way to treat the sexually transmitted infection.
See the
2015 CDC guidelines for gonorrhoea treatment
Detailed info on treatment and management of Gonococcal infections including diagnostic considerations, antimicrobial resistance, dual therapy, management of sex partners, and treatment failures.
Use Condoms, Gonorrhea Cannot be Treated
Clapway, 7 November 2015
The resistance to the routine antibiotic treatment used for gonorrhoea has doubled in the last year, and susceptibility to the drug has gone up 0.8%.
LGBT
Elton John: 'Gay stigma seeps into your soul'
Belfast Telegraph, 9 November 2015
Elton John speaks frankly about hiding his sexuality while growing up. “As a gay man growing up in the 1950s and 60s in England, internalised stigma was something all gay people carried.”
Ambivalence and tensions in young gay men’s accounts of monogamy and relationships
Aidsmap, 12 November 2015
Australian study based on interviews with gay men – single or in a relationship - on the issues of intimacy, relationships and monogamy. Concerns about HIV and sexual health were rarely given as the reason to value a monogamous relationship.
Sex Work
New law ‘will damage’ sex workers’ health (Subscription required for full article)
The Times, 12 November 2015
Frances Fitzgerald, the justice minister, and Leo Varadkar, the health minister, have been criticised by HIV Ireland, which said that new legislation would put sex workers at greater risk of sexually transmitted infections.
