PrEP can prevent people from getting HIV up to 95%, according to medical specialists. But this pill does not protect people from other diseases that people can get by doing things like syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia…
When having sex, some people don’t like to use condoms at all. Therefore, many of them get into the habit of drinking this small tablet called PrEP there, so they don’t catch HIV/AIDS. But many of them tend to take it seriously, because they don’t respect the conditions for taking PrEP, or they don’t understand why it’s good. In today’s video, AyiboPost brings all the details you need to know about this medicine.
Not long ago, we noticed an advertisement on television in Haiti or on social networks, about a small pill called PrEP. The advertisement makes people believe that it is a pill that a person can take to avoid getting HIV if he is going to do things with someone who is seropositive, that is, infected with the virus.
Effectively, the World Health Organization (WHO) in its recommendations made in 2015 and which would be revised in 2016, recommends PrEP as a complement to prevent infection among populations more exposed to transmitting the virus.
In Haiti, since the end of 2019, through the national program to fight AIDS (PNLS), the Ministry of Public Health and Population has managed to launch a prevention campaign against the disease. This campaign would come after medical experts found that the vaccines given against AIDS are less effective. And it is the Ministry of Public Health through the Panos Institute that is leading this campaign in the country.
What is PrEP even?
According to what Dr. Emmanuel Belimaire, who is a consultant for the Panos Institute as part of this campaign, explained to AyiboPost, PrEP stands for “pre-exposure prophylaxis”. It contains a combination of antiretroviral drugs used to treat HIV such as Tenofovir (TDF), Emtricitabine (FTC) or Tenofovir (TDF) and Lamivudine (3TC).
In the guidelines entitled “Directives nationales pour la dispensation de la prophylaxie pré-exposition (PrEP) en Haïti” developed by PNLS and published in April 2018, PrEP is defined as a biomedical prevention method.
With this method, a person who is seronegative, that is, who does not have HIV, is used to reduce the risk of being infected with the virus.
To put it simply, PrEP is a prevention method, a medicine you take before you are in a situation where you could catch AIDS by doing things.
Good news!
People do not spend money to buy this tablet: it is free in Haiti, in health centers and hospitals that are there for this.
Many other countries are using PrEP. Among them are the United States, Canada… there are also countries in Eastern and Southern Africa and especially countries that are developing.
Do PrEP Is it 100% effective? At what time, how can one take this tablet? Can anyone who takes it stop it? Can pregnant women take it? Does it cause side effects? Does it replace condoms?
Dr. Belimaire says that the studies show, PrEP the efficacy up to 95%.
Se a pill taken by mouth, one pill every day, whether the person has eaten or not.
Now, let’s look at the 2 recommended methods for someone to take PrEP.
First method! A person, for example, who is often in a situation where he is at risk of contracting HIV, must take the pill every day.
But, Dr. Belimaire specifies, there is a limited number of days the person is supposed to take PrEP there before he goes to do things without a condom.
For the first method: The person must take the PrEP for 3 to 4 weeks before doing things without a condom. Thus, the specialist guarantees, even if this person is doing things with a partner who would be seropositive, he will not catch HIV/AIDS. We remind you: this method is for people who often do things with several people.
Second method! It’s called “PrEP à la demande”, for people who don’t do things often. Therefore, this method is for the one who is not always doing things and who schedules every moment he has to do things.
For “PrEP à la demande”, the person must take:
- 2 pills 24 hours or two hours before sexual intercourse,
- One pill the first day after the last intercourse, and
- One tablet on the 2nd day after the last intercourse.
If this person continues to do things with the infected person day after day, he will need to take the medicine every day, until the 2nd day after the last sexual intercourse.
The so-called “PrEP à la demande” method, the specialists experiment more with men. The experience was made on them, especially on homosexual men.
Can someone decide to stop PrEP?
According to the specialists, a person can decide to stop the PrEP, if he considers that he is no longer in a situation where he is exposed to HIV. For example, a person who used to have sex with someone who is HIV-positive and no longer has a relationship with that person.
For accuracy, Dr. Emmanuel Belimaire says, a person who was a sex professional and is no longer in the practice, if that person stops PrEP, after the last sexual report, he must continue to take the pill for at least 7 days.
Be aware, my dear, that PrEP works on women just as it works on men.
A pregnant woman can take PrEP, according to what the Dr. told AyiboPost. It is known that the pill will have no effect on the baby developing in the mother’s womb, nor when it is born while it is being breastfed.
Dr. Belimaire specifies, PrEP can not prevent girls from getting pregnant, so it is not planned.
Speaking of being pregnant, not long ago AyiboPost published a video about a pill called After Day or “pillule du lendemain”, a pill that many women drink to prevent pregnancy. In this video, we provide a lot of detail and precision.
Other things experts say: PrEP does not give stamina and does not reduce male stamina either.
And, we must always remember: if it is true that PrEP can prevent people from getting HIV up to 95%, then my dear, this pill does not protect people from other diseases that people can get by doing things like syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, etc.
But when you take it, does it not have side effects?
PrEP does not automatically produce side effects, but some people experience discomfort such as vomiting, nausea, dizziness, headache and fatigue.
But we know that among all that we say, there are limits, there are people who are eligible, there are people who are not eligible.
Who is eligible for PrEP?
According to Dr. Belimaire, the first criterion for someone to take PrEP is that the person must not have been infected with HIV before, that is, the person must not have the virus in his blood. Because an HIV-positive person is taking PrEP, it can complicate any future control or treatment options for the virus.
The person must also be an adult, this is according to the established formalities, but scientifically, everyone who is doing things should be able to take PrEP. It is not because it will affect a minor that he will be able to take it.
People who can take PrEP are people who have relationships with fellow men, people called Harsah (Hommes Ayant des Rapports Sexuels Avec des Hommes), people who have risky sexual practices such as people who do things from behind (sex anal), people who have several sexual partners, sex professionals, people who are used to taking drugs by injection, therefore intravenously, transgender people, serodixodan or serodifferent couples (that is, couples where one of the partners is seropositive and the other is seronegative, all these categories of people can take PrEP! And it is also a good way to protect them.
Who is not eligible to take PrEP?
As we said earlier, people who are seropositive (with HIV/AIDS), not included. In addition, a person with kidney disorders, a person who is allergic to one of the components that make up PrEP will not be able to take it either.
But you don’t have to worry, if you decide to take it, before they put you on the PrEP, there are tests that must be done for you. For example, if you have kidney problems, they must do an examination for you first. Dr. Belimaire also informs that it is important to be tested for hepatitis B before they put you on the medicine. Because, a person taking PrEP, there is a component in the medicine, which is Tenofovir, which can wake up a chronic hepatitis B, who was sleeping in that person’s house in case that person stops taking the medicine.
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To finish my friends, we remind you: PrEP is not a pill to cure people who already have HIV-AIDS, but rather a pill that can prevent a person from catching the virus. It is effective up to 95%, according to experts. But you must be asking yourself, aren’t there other methods after PrEP that are 100% effective in preventing people from getting HIV? Well, let me give you good news!
In July 2024, as part of the 25th international AIDS conference in Germany, a group of researchers presented a very promising result. It is reported that the US laboratory Gilead has developed a new HIV prevention method called Sunlenca. It is made from a molecule called lenacapavir that would be 100% effective in preventing HIV. Unlike PrEP, which is a pill, Sundenca is an injection that a person can take twice a year, so one every month, and peace!
If it is true that Sundenca is already commercialized in some countries such as the United States, France, Norway and Australia, it is still not accessible to everyone, so expensive. But there are discussions that would allow the US laboratory to make it available at low cost, so that more people can benefit from it.
We can understand, a person cannot wake up one morning, and decide to take PrEP as he wants, as he prefers. Therefore, the best decision is to go to the health center or hospital that is there for that, for a better recommendation.
▶ Journalism: Lucnise Duquereste & Fenel Pelissier
▶ Camera : Sherlande Pierre
▶ Editing and animation : Wilson Saintelus & Max Kendlay K. Toussaint
▶ Supervision: Cherub Jerome
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