After identifying significant knowledge gaps about ‘Undetectable = Untransmitable’ (U=U), scepticism about its effectiveness, and hesitancy to endorse it, researchers from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa consulted with health workers who stressed the need for a simple and standardised presentation of U=U for their clients. In response, the researchers collaborated with people living with HIV, clinicians, and scientific experts to develop an easy-to-use web-based app to support HIV counselling in primary healthcare settings in South Africa ..read more

A mutation that can undermine two-drug treatment with dolutegravir and lamivudine persists for at least 12 years in the ‘archive’ of HIV locked up in the DNA of blood cells in one in three people, French researchers report. Their study tracked disappearance of the mutation in people with suppressed viral load on antiretroviral treatment ..read more

A survey of over half a million people in low- and middle-income countries found that men and women with disabilities were 25% less likely to have comprehensive knowledge about HIV prevention compared to people without disabilities. They were also less likely to know a place to be tested for HIV. Additionally, women with disabilities were less likely to know how to prevent vertical transmission and to have ever been tested for HIV compared to women without disabilities ..read more

A comprehensive national effort to improve the uptake of cervical screening among women living with HIV in Uganda resulted in more than 280,000 screening visits in the second year of the campaign, up from just 6500 visits in the first six months. The proportion of women with a positive result who received treatment increased from 12% to 84% during the same period, almost achieving the 90% target set by the World Health Organization for cervical cancer elimination by 2030 ..read more

The emergence of high-level dolutegravir resistance was extremely rare in people switched to first-line dolutegravir-based treatment in Zambia and Malawi, a large prospective study has found. But the risk of having unsuppressed HIV one and two years after switching was six to seven times higher in people who switched to dolutegravir with detectable HIV. The researchers say their findings emphasise the importance of viral load monitoring before switching. The study findings are reported in Clinical Infectious Diseases ..read more

The majority of people who develop low-level viral load on dolutegravir resuppress viral load without needing to change treatment, a large Nigerian study has found, confirming observations regarding the frequency of viral load resuppression from the ADVANCE study of first-line antiretroviral treatment in South Africa. The findings are published this month in the journal AIDS ..read more

? With heavy hearts, we announce the proposed closure of our beloved charity, NAM aidsmap, this month. After 37 years of pioneering health journalism, community engagement, and empowerment through information, we will cease operations this summer. We are incredibly proud of the millions we've reached worldwide and the grassroots ingenuity and commitment of our team and partners ..read more

Clinical education should teach a broader understanding of respectful clinical care for racialised women living with HIV from low-income backgrounds, an American study finds. While respecting patient autonomy is important, a singular focus on it may result in providers neglecting other ways that respect can be shown and may have a particular impact on how racialised women receive care within HIV clinics, say Dr Sofia Fernandez of Florida International University and colleagues ..read more

The proportion of people with HIV who remain engaged with HIV care has declined over the years since HIV treatment began to be recommended for all people living with HIV, according to a retrospective cohort study published recently in PLOS Medicine. The study also shows that even after the national adoption of ‘Treat All’ guidelines in 25 countries in the last decade, there were glaring gaps in monitoring long-term HIV care outcomes ..read more

A study designed to find out whether it is necessary or even desirable to test and treat gay and bisexual male and trans-female PrEP users for the bacterial STIs chlamydia or gonorrhoea every three months has produced an inconclusive result. The researchers’ hypothesis was that treating asymptomatic STIs found during quarterly STI testing in PrEP users may have little clinical benefit, over-uses antibiotics with consequences for bacterial resistance, and may inflate the importance of the two STIs as a health problem.  ..read more