via Microbicide Trials Network VOICE, an HIV prevention trial evaluating two antiretroviral (ARV)-based approaches for preventing the sexual transmission of HIV in women – daily use of one of two different ARV tablets or of a vaginal gel – will be dropping one of the oral tablets from the study. The decision to discontinue use of tenofovir Read More >>

Via Associated Press. A Zimbabwean lawmaker has called on scientists to develop a chemical to dull men’s libido and enable them to have sex once a month to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS, a state daily reported. Senator Sithembile Mlotshwa told the upper house of parliament that scientists should “look into the issue of trying to inject Read More >>

Via AIDSMap, by Carole Leach-Lemens. A comparative study in three large cities in southern Africa has found big differences in risk factors for acquisition of HIV infection, emphasising the importance of locally tailored HIV prevention strategies and up-to-date information on local risk factors. The study looked at behavioural risk factors associated with acquiring HIV infection in 5000 Read More >>

Via PlusNews. Commercial sex work, dominated by a focus on women, could be redefined as new research launched today in Nairobi, Kenya, sheds light on the complicated HIV prevention needs of what may be Africa’s most deeply underground group at high risk of HIV – male sex workers. The report co-authored by the United Nations Development Programme Read More >>

via International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission Antiquated laws against same-sex sexual activity as well as deeply ingrained social stigma result in the all-too-frequent targeting of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Africa for blackmail and extortion, said the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) in a report launched today. The report, Read More >>

via Journal of the International AIDS Society, by Mapingure et al. A new study concludes that higher HIV-1 prevalence among pregnant women in Zimbabwe compared with Tanzania cannot be explained by differences in risky sexual behaviour. From the abstract: Substantial heterogeneity in HIV prevalence has been observed within sub-Saharan Africa. It is not clear which factors can Read More >>

via IRIN PlusNews When researchers returned to Zimbabwe several months after the end of a trial involving condom and diaphragm use, they were disappointed to find that condom use – which had risen to 86 percent during the trial – had reduced significantly. “What happens after trials has always remained very much a mystery, and today, with Read More >>

From The Standard, by Kudzai Chimhangwa The success of tests into the effectiveness of anti-HIV gels to be used by women before engaging in sex has presented Zimbabwe with another chance of further reducing the rapid transmission of the virus. According to various presentations made at a feedback workshop organised by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Read More >>

From NewsDay, by Owen Gagare Inmates in Zimbabwe’s filthy prisons could soon be receiving condoms while in incarceration to prevent the spread of HIV, NewsDay has established. According to proposals by the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare and World Health Organisation (WHO), prisoners could soon benefit from initiatives to curb the spread of the deadly scourge. Read More >>

Via The Guardian, by Sarah Boseley A big effort is under way to circumcise 80% of young men in Zimbabwe after a study four years ago found that the operation reduced the chance of contracting HIV by 60%. Yet the procedure is still not widely available across sub-Saharan Africa, where HIV prevalence is high, the International Aids Read More >>