Tag: HIV transmission | Page 2

Canada’s top doctors say Undetectable = Untransmittable

December 1, 2017 • By Laurie Edmiston

It’s official! The Government of Canada supports U=U, the consensus statement that a person living with HIV does not transmit the virus sexually if they take treatment and maintain an undetectable viral load (“undetectable = untransmittable”). The news came on November 30 in a joint statement from Canada’s chief public health officer and the chief medical officers of health of all Canadian provinces and territories.

Three reasons why CATIE supports U=U for sexual transmission

January 24, 2017 • By Camille Arkell

CATIE recently endorsed the Consensus Statement of the Prevention Access Campaign, celebrating the fact that “undetectable equals untransmittable.” This revolutionary statement, pushed forward by a dedicated group of people living with HIV, has prompted CATIE to reflect on our sexual HIV prevention messaging. The research on treatment as prevention has been slowly accumulating for many years. As an evidence-based organization, CATIE now recognizes that the evidence on undetectable viral load has reached a point where we are compelled to take our messaging a step further. We can comfortably say that when a person taking antiretroviral treatment has an ongoing undetectable...

There are thousands of people in Canada who are in a serodiscordant relationship, yet we know very little about their experiences and needs

January 17, 2017 • By James Iveniuk

Marcus and David have been dating for three years. Marcus is HIV-positive and David is HIV-negative. David was worried when he told his parents that his new partner was HIV-positive, but after they saw how happy Marcus makes him, they have welcomed Marcus into their lives. At the same time, they still worry that their son may become infected. Faith is living with HIV, and her partner, Scott, is HIV-negative. Faith often finds herself having to educate Scott on what she has to do to manage her condition and Scott has had difficulty understanding because information changes quickly. They fight...

How do you communicate HIV risk information?

September 15, 2015 • By James Wilton

“What is the risk of HIV transmission through condomless anal sex if I am the receptive partner?” “How low is the risk if my viral load is undetectable?” “What’s the risk if my partner was in the acute phase of HIV infection when we had sex?” Questions about HIV risk aren’t easy to answer and—with all the recent advancements in our understanding of HIV transmission and prevention—things aren’t getting any easier!

“Unprotected” or “condomless”: Upgrading our HIV terminology

June 16, 2015 • By James Wilton

What do you call sex without a condom? Unprotected? Only a few years ago, you might have been correct. But a growing consensus of HIV prevention experts is shifting away from this terminology to something more accurate and more simple: sex without a condom, or condomless sex. Why? Our understanding of HIV transmission and prevention has changed dramatically in the past decade, and with it have come new words and terms. Post- and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PEP and PrEP). Undetectable viral load. Treatment as prevention.