The IHDS may be a useful screening test to identify individuals at risk for HIV dementia in both the industrialized world and the developing world. Full neuropsychological testing should then be performed to confirm a diagnosis of HIV dementia.
Objectives:Globally approximately 25% of men are circumcised for religious, cultural, medical, or parental choice reasons. However, controversy surrounds the procedure, and its benefits and risks to health. We review current knowledge of the health benefits and risks associated with male circumcision. Methods: We have used, where available, previously conducted reviews of the relation between male circumcision and specific outcomes as "benchmarks", and updated them by searching the Medline database for more recent information. Results: There is substantial evidence that circumcision protects males from HIV infection, penile carcinoma, urinary tract infections, and ulcerative sexually transmitted diseases. We could find little scientific evidence of adverse eVects on sexual, psychological, or emotional health. Surgical risks associated with circumcision, particularly bleeding, penile injury, and local infection, as well as the consequences of the pain experienced with neonatal circumcision, are valid concerns that require appropriate responses. Conclusion: Further analyses of the utility and cost eVectiveness of male circumcision as a preventive health measure should, in the light of this information, be research and policy priorities. A decision as to whether to recommend male circumcision in a given society should be based upon an assessment of the risk for and occurrence of the diseases which are associated with the presence of the foreskin, versus the risk of the complications of the procedure. In order for individuals and their families to make an informed decision, they should be provided with the best available evidence regarding the known benefits and risks. (Sex Transm Inf 1998;74:368-373)
§k for the Partners PrEP Study TeamBackground: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is associated with higher HIV incidence, reduced condom use, and poor adherence to antiretroviral therapy and other medications. IPV may also affect adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
Methods:We analyzed data from 1785 HIV-uninfected women enrolled in a clinical trial of PrEP among African HIV serodiscordant couples. Experience of verbal, physical, or economic IPV was assessed at monthly visits by face-to-face interviews. Low PrEP adherence was defined as clinic-based pill count coverage ,80% or plasma tenofovir levels ,40 ng/mL. The association between IPV and low adherence was analyzed using generalized estimating equations, adjusting for potential confounders. In-depth interview transcripts were examined to explain how IPV could impact adherence.Results: Sixteen percent of women reported IPV during a median of 34.8 months of follow-up (interquartile range 27.0-35.0). Overall, 7% of visits had pill count coverage ,80%, and 32% had plasma tenofovir ,40 ng/mL. Women reporting IPV in the past 3 months had increased risk of low adherence by pill count (adjusted risk ratio 1.49, 95% confidence interval: 1.17 to 1.89) and by plasma tenofovir (adjusted risk ratio 1.51, 95% confidence interval: 1.06 to 2.15). Verbal, economic, and physical IPV were all associated with low adherence. However, the impact of IPV diminished and was not statistically significant 3 months after the reported exposure. In qualitative interviews, women identified several ways in which IPV affected adherence, including stress and forgetting, leaving home without pills, and partners throwing pills away.
Conclusions: Women who reported recent IPV in the PartnersPrEP Study were at increased risk of low PrEP adherence. Strategies to mitigate PrEP nonadherence in the context of IPV should be evaluated.
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