Increased HIV Susceptibility and Transmissibility in Women Using Hormonal Contraception
Increased HIV Susceptibility and Transmissibility in Women Using Hormonal Contraception
Carmen de Mendoza
Puerta de Hierro University Hospital, Madrid, Spain
*Correspondence: Carmen de Mendoza, Email not available
Abstract
Results from a prospective study of 3,790 HIV-serodiscordant heterosexual couples from seven countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have recently alerted about an increased risk of HIV acquisition using hormonal contraception (Heffron, et al. Lancet Infect Dis. 2012;12:19-26). The study was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Among 1,314 HIV-seronegative women with an HIV-positive male partner followed for a median of 18 months, rates of HIV acquisition were nearly double in women who used hormonal contraception than in those who did not (6.6 vs. 3.8 per 100 person-years, respectively; p = 0.03).
