Literature on New HIV Infections Lacks Practical Information on Both PrEP & Risk

Literature on recently acquired HIV focuses mainly on HIV acquisition from individualistic and behavioral perspectives, excluding information about living with HIV, such as immediate ART initiation, stigma, and wellbeing, according to results published in AIDS. Shema Tariq, MD, PhD, and colleagues examined qualitative literature on recently acquired HIV in a systematic review and textual narrative synthesis, including 16 articles in total. The researchers described “high confidence” in three of the 15 themes they identified: recent acquisition of HIV enables patients’ understanding of circumstances in which HIV is acquired; indeterminate HIV test results cause uncertainty and anxiety; and people with newly acquired HIV are motivated to decrease risk of onward transmission. “We found no studies exploring sexual risk in the context of recently acquired HIV or use of PrEP or treatment as prevention,” Dr. Tariq and colleagues wrote. “Our findings highlight the importance of continued research into recently acquired HIV, as well as the need for support to manage the emotional impact of indeterminate test results and negotiate risk reduction.”