In-depth: AIDS 2008 - PlusNews in Mexico

Photo: UNAIDS/P.Virot

Whether women's HIV risk will be lowered by male circumcision programmes is not certain

Male circumcision - a gamble for women?

MEXICO CITY, 8 August 2008 (PlusNews) - While researchers and advocates at the International AIDS Conference this week urged donors and governments to rapidly scale up male circumcision programmes, others raised concerns about what this would mean for women.

In March 2007, the World Health Organisation and UNAIDS issued recommendations that gave the green light to male circumcision as an HIV prevention strategy, after studies in Kisumu, Kenya and the township of Orange Farm in South Africa showed that it could reduce the risk of infection by up to 60 percent. full report

REPORTS

GLOBAL: High food prices put pressure on HIV programmes

11 August 2008 (PlusNews) - Steadily increasing prices could lead to a lack of affordable and nourishing food, endangering the lives of people living with HIV in the developing world, experts have said. full report

AFRICA: TB failures threaten HIV treatment gains

8 August 2008 (PlusNews) - Tuberculosis (TB) is the biggest killer of people living with HIV in Africa, but only one percent of HIV-positive people accessing treatment were screened for TB in 2006, an oversight that activists say threatens to roll back the gains made in placing more than three million people on life-prolonging anti-retroviral (ARVs) treatment. full report

GLOBAL: The female condom - the step-child in HIV prevention

7 August 2008 (PlusNews) - The female condom – currently the only female-controlled method of preventing HIV - is rarely available to women who need it. Blaming poor marketing and insufficient investment, activists at the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City said failure to promote the female condom had hurt global HIV prevention efforts.full report

AFRICA: "Terrifying" new HIV/AIDS laws could undermine AIDS fight

7 August 2008 (PlusNews) - In an attempt to stem the spread of the virus, African countries are increasingly passing legislation that criminalises HIV exposure and transmission. But these laws could do more harm than good, delegates attending the International AIDS Conference in Mexico, heard on Wednesday. full report

GLOBAL: Children short-changed by AIDS response

7 August 2008 (PlusNews) - Huge strides have been made in the provision of antiretroviral (ARV) treatment, and HIV prevention is receiving more attention than ever before, but the global AIDS response has neglected children, said experts at the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City this week. full report

GLOBAL: ARVs as prevention tool sparks debate

7 August 2008 (PlusNews) - The recent controversial statement by Swiss researchers that HIV-positive people on treatment with an undetectable viral load could not infect their sexual partners was a hotly debated issue at the International AIDS Conference this week. full report

United States: Black Americans left behind in AIDS battle

6 August 2008 (PlusNews) - If black America were a country, it would rank 16th in the world in terms of the number of people living with HIV, yet activists say black Americans lack many of the HIV services their government has provided to other nations through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). full report

GLOBAL: Treatment as prevention: the next frontier

6 August 2008 (PlusNews) - As the search for an effective HIV prevention strategy intensifies, scientists are hoping that antiretroviral (ARV) drugs, normally associated with HIV treatment, may provide part of the answer. full report

GLOBAL: Sex education failing young people

6 August 2008 (PlusNews) - Most sex and HIV education programmes for young people focus on the risks of unsafe sex, leaving them ill-equipped to deal with their sexuality and unable to lead sexually fulfilling lives, experts have said. full report

GLOBAL: Is there still hope for an HIV vaccine?

5 August 2008 (PlusNews) - The road to finding an effective HIV vaccine has recently been marked by a string of disappointing setbacks, and researchers have warned that a breakthrough in this field is still a long way off. Should we give up hope? full report

GLOBAL: Religion - a double-edged sword in HIV fight

5 August 2008 (PlusNews) - The contribution of faith-based organisations to the treatment and care of people living with HIV and AIDS is well known, but it is less clear whether religion is an aid or a barrier when it comes to HIV prevention efforts.full report

AFRICA: Sex by the side of the road

4 August 2008 (PlusNews) - Roadside bars, truckers and sex workers have long been seen as one of the most dangerous combinations for the transmission of HIV, with truckers often blamed for spreading the virus. full report

AIDS 2008: PlusNews in Mexico
AIDS 2008 - Mexico City 3-8 August 2008 - XVII International AIDS Conference