A new HIV prevention injection is now available to a select number of people in South Africa. That a single shot provides two months of protection is one of the injection’s major selling points. In this story, Elri Voigt unpacks how much of the jab is available, who is choosing to get it and what […]
Tag: HIV-Aids and STDs
Africa is the continent with the most genetic diversity, but is gravely underrepresented in genomic research, with only 2% of global genomic data coming from people of African ancestry as of 2021. As a result, disease risk prediction and drug development has predominantly used data from European populations, with varying applicability to health outcomes in […]
Nairobi, Kenya — Recent studies show that food insecurity is a barrier to the optimal treatment of HIV because some people forego crucial medication for fear of the side effects they experience when taking the drugs on an empty stomach. The problem is especially acute among people living in poverty – like the residents of […]
HEALTH stakeholders have applauded Tanzania’s decision to join the Global Alliance to end AIDS in children by 2030 saying it offers a great opportunity as the country targets to eradicate AIDS amongst the group to less than four percent by 2025. Last week ministers and representatives from 12 African countries committed themselves, and laid out […]
Around 8.45 million people in South Africa live with HIV – an estimated 13.9% of the population. Of South African women aged 15-49, approximately 24% are HIV positive. The roll-out of services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV has been notably successful in reducing the rate of transmission. But there are still gaps in the […]
With the remarkable success of antiretroviral treatment people living with HIV in South Africa are generally living much longer than they did two decades ago – so much so that overall life expectancy in the country has shot up by around nine years since the peak of South Africa’s HIV epidemic in the early 2000s. […]
South Africa’s mass HIV testing programme has been a huge success over the last decade, so much so that the country has almost hit the global target of 95% of people with HIV knowing their status. This success has largely been built on the use of many millions of rapid HIV tests. The UNAIDS targets […]
To find “hidden” children living with HIV around the world, you need to find their mothers. To do so, innovative projects in Africa are entering places of worship and finding thousands who are now receiving life-saving treatment. Every hour, 11 children die of AIDS, so finding them and offering treatment is as critical as ever, […]
A potent home brew known as Chikodzongo has not only become popular in Mbire through bringing together imbibers for social purposes, it has its own dark side — concealing indoor prostitution that is blamed for fuelling HIV transmissions. As the sex workers hide behind doors in doeks and wrapping cloths, it has become difficult for […]
Ending the AIDS pandemic – particularly in eastern and southern Africa – cannot be achieved unless more resources are channelled to meet the needs of key vulnerable populations. This is one of the themes that emerged during an AIDS conference in June in South Africa. Prejudice against particular groups – such as men who have […]
HIV prevalence has been reducing during the past two decades in the East African region thanks to strong shared responsibility between the region’s governments, civil society, international donors and the research community. However, together with southern Africa, the region remains the most affected by the HIV epidemic, accounting for 45 per cent of the world’s […]
Doing ‘the right thing’ for one’s health, be it eating well, exercising, or going for an annual HIV test or blood pressure check, is easier said than done. One way to nudge people to make these ‘right’ decisions is to offer rewards or incentives. Discovery Health Medical Scheme’s Vitality programme is probably the best local […]
Well-worn untruths about HIV/Aids took a backseat during the Covid-19 pandemic. But vigilance against Aids denialism is important, particularly in Africa where access to accurate information and inclusive healthcare is still patchy. Since the discovery of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the 1980s, widespread myths about HIV infection and claims about natural cures have […]
Specially trained pharmacists will be allowed to manage and prescribe medicine to patients with HIV and/or tuberculosis The Pretoria High Court has dismissed an application brought by a doctors organisation, the IPA Foundation, for the setting aside of the PIMART initiative. The initiative will allow specially trained pharmacists to treat people with HIV and TB. […]
2023 was a busy year for healthcare in South Africa. There were several policy developments, landmark court cases, important pieces of legislation, and some changes in leadership. Yet, take a step back and not much seems to have changed. Shortages of healthcare workers persist, corruption is still rife, budgets tight, and our health governance crisis […]
Despite South Africa’s impressive HIV testing figures, a subset of people start taking antiretroviral therapy far later than is ideal for their health, shows new data from the leading mathematical model of HIV in the country. These new estimates present a synthesis of the best sources of data of HIV in the country as it […]
Despite all the gains made in HIV response in the last few years, there is still a bit of challenge in the area of stigma and discrimination. The National Agency for the Control of AIDs (NACA) has called for improved reportage from the media if the country is to end stigmatisation and discrimination against Persons […]
Over the past three decades researchers have explored various aspects of the impact of the HIV pandemic. One focus area has been children who have lost their parents to AIDS. Less attention has been given to children who are raised by parents living with HIV. This group has become much bigger as more people have […]