Semen may harbor HIV despite effective HAART: another piece in the puzzle.
cross_sectional · Level IV
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 20485526.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0010569 and PMC identifier PMC2738122.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: The risk of male-to-female intravaginal HIV-1 transmission is estimated at about 1 event per 200-2000 coital acts. The aim of this study was to assess the residual risk of HIV presence in semen in patients under HAART therapy. METHODS AND FINDINGS: The study took place in France from October 2001 to March 2009. 394 paired blood and semen samples were provided from 332 HIV-1 infected men. The Roche Cobas AMPLICOR Monitor HIV assay was used to quantify HIV-1 RNA in blood and in seminal plasma. Three percent of 394 HIV-1 infected men enrolled in an assisted reproductive technology program harbored detectable HIV-1 RNA in semen, although they had no other sexually transmitted disease and their blood viral load was undetectable for at least 6 months under antiretroviral treatment. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that undetectable plasma HIV RNA means a lower risk of viral transmission through seminal fluid on a population level, but not necessarily at the level of the individual.