Hiv Infection

CHICAGO — Updated guidelines provide clear CVD prevention strategies for most patients, but barriers to optimal treatment in some patients remain, including issues related to sex, age, inflammation and adequate testing, according to a speaker.

Findings from a systematic review and meta-analysis showed that African countries with severe anti-LGBT legislation have lower levels of HIV testing and awareness among men who have sex with men, or MSM.

An analysis of data collected by the National NeuroAIDS Tissue Consortium, or NNTC, showed that complex motor dysfunction remains common among patients with HIV and is associated with cerebrovascular disease, AIDS-related CNS disorders and HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder, researchers reported.

Rapid screening tests may not reliably diagnose HIV in natural HIV controllers, leading to false-negative test results in some patients, according to recently published study findings.

Initiating 28-week isoniazid therapy during pregnancy was noninferior to initiating it 12 weeks after delivery to prevent tuberculosis in pregnant women with HIV who are on ART, according to results from a randomized controlled trial published in The New England Journal of Medicine. However, researchers found a greater risk for treatment-related adverse events in mothers who initiated treatment during pregnancy, suggesting that the best time to start isoniazid is after delivery.

WASHINGTON — Findings presented at IDWeek demonstrated the potential of Grindr to identify men who have sex with men, or MSM, who are at high risk for HIV, suggesting a potential new route for testing and prevention outreach, researchers said.

The FDA has approved Descovy as a second option for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, in at-risk adults and adolescents. The approval excludes patients who have receptive vaginal intercourse due to a lack of efficacy data in this population, the agency said.

Combination HIV interventions in HIV-hyperendemic fishing communities in Uganda resulted in increased testing, male circumcision and ART coverage, as well as increased population HIV viral load suppression, according to findings from a prospective cohort study published in The Lancet HIV.

A tuberculosis prediction score based on diagnostic models may enable prompt treatment decisions in HIV-infected children with suspected TB and a high risk for mortality, according to research published in Pediatrics. Implementing the score would likely have significant public health benefits, the researchers noted.

Preliminary data published in MMWR showed that most men who have sex with men, or MSM, are aware of pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, for HIV prevention, but that black and Hispanic MSM were much less likely than white MSM to have ever discussed it with a health care provider.