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Researchers identify potential preventative treatment for HIV

Category: HIV

The AIDS virus continues to spread throughout the nation with little impeding its progress. Aside from regular HIV testing and safe sexual practices, there are few things that a person can do to prevent infection.

However, new research suggests that providing antiretroviral medications to individuals who are at high risk of contracting the infection may help shield them from the virus, according to HealthDay News.

Researchers from the University of Washington tested the effectiveness of a medication called Truvada on couples in Africa in which one partner was infected with HIV. The results showed that the non-infected partner was 63 percent less likely to receive a positive HIV test if they were given the antiretroviral therapy.

"This is an extremely exciting finding for the field of HIV prevention," Dr. Jared Baeten, the lead researcher on the study, told the news source.

However, until this medication becomes more widely available as a preventative treatment, regular HIV testing among high-risk individuals may be advised. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that this one of the most effective ways to slow the spread of the infection.