This article talks about a recent drive by advocacy groups to have the FDA deny or delay the acceptance of the drug Truvada as a preventative medication for HIV exposure. As good as a preventative may sound, there are serious issues with this idea.
- This will cost around $14,000 USD annually
- This medication has to be taken daily
- Not taken as prescribed lessens it's potency
- Haphazard use could promote resistance to the drug
- This drug can cause kidney damage
Let's start with the cost. How many of us have that type of $ to spend on a virus we do not have? Its doubtful many insurances agencies will cover this. Adherence to this program is a must & people have a difficult time maintaining the regimens for diseases they actually have. People without HIV will probably not give this regimen the serious dedication it needs, but still feel absolutely protected if they've only take one of last week's doses. Failure to comply to the regimen could lead to the virus becoming resistant to the medication.
The biggie here, is the fact that this medication can cause serious kidney damage. HIV meds are not easy on you. They all have side effects & many of them are unpleasant to say the least. Having constant diarrhea, dealing with joint aches or facing alopecia are by no means a walk in the park.
A preventive sounds amazing & maybe someday it will be here. Personally, if I weren't +, I wouldn't opt for this approach to prevention. There are better ways.
Cya
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