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Hormonal contraception use did not increase risk for HIV transmission
SEATTLE — There was no increased risk for HIV acquisition in women or transmission to men in HIV-discordant couples when the woman was using hormonal contraception, according to researchers from the Rakai Health Sciences Program in Entebbe, Uganda.
The researchers prospectively identified HIV-discordant couples who were enrolled in the Rakai Community Cohort from 1999 to 2009. Contraception use was determined at each annual visit. The analyses excluded follow-up intervals in which the HIV-positive partner reported antiretroviral therapy use and condom use. The researchers adjusted for age, number of sex partners and alcohol use before sex.
Among 288 couples with an HIV-positive man and an HIV-negative woman, the male-to-female transmission was 7.7/100 person-years among nonhormonal contraception users and 7.2/100 person-years among hormonal contraception users (RR=1.13; 95% CI, 0.62-2.08). Among 224 couples with an HIV-positive woman and an HIV-negative man, female-to-male transmission was 7/100 person-years for non-hormonal contraception users and 6.9/100 person-years among hormonal contraception users (RR=1.04; 95% CI, 0.43-2.48).
“We wanted to allow for condom use to see if there was any differential in the adjusted rates,” researcher Tom Lutalo, MSc, of the Rakai Health Science Program, said at a press conference here. “However, after allowing for condom use, we did not observe an increased risk of HIV transmission or acquisition.”
For more information:
- Lutalo T. #563. Presented at: 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections; March 5-8, 2012; Seattle.
Disclosure: Mr. Lutalo reports no relevant financial disclosures.