HIV PREVENTION METHODS

-HIV prevention all start by one knowing his or her own status. If one is HIV positive  one can get medical care, treatment and supportive services  to help one stay healthy  and reduce one's ability to transmit the virus to others.
-Prevention methods for HIV can be broadly classified as behavioural and biological methods. Behavioural prevention methods of HIV include;
1.Abtaining from sex or by being in a long term mutually monogamous relationships with an uninfected person.
-Male circumcision  has also been shown to reduce the risk of HIV transmission from women to men during vaginal sex.
3.Correct and consistent condom  usage.
-There has been immense research going on over the year on biological options like vaccine, microbicide, male circumcision, pre and post exposure prophylaxis.
-Use of pre-exposure prophylaxis, it is a pill taken once a day that can help prevent HIV infection. It is taken before being exposed  to the risk.
-Use of post-exposure prophylaxis it is a series of pills one start to take after been exposed to HIV that lowers one's chances of getting HIV.
-Effective vaccine, if available, would have an impact on HIV eradication. However treatment of infected patients with anti-retrovirals also serve as one of the prevention strategies, by decreasing secondary transmissions
-Biological prevention methods include;
1.Infected, pregnant and breastfeeding mothers should take precaution before giving birth and before breastfeeding the infant thus reducing the chances of mother to child transmission.
-The success of programmes for prevention of mother to child transmission in decreasing vertical transmission in infants.
2. Before and during transmission of blood and blood products screening process should take place thus preventing and protecting the recepient from being infected with HIV.
-Behavioural HIV prevention methods along with the effective anti-retrovirals have helped in stabilizing HIV epidemic in many countries. With availability of effective anti-retrovirals drugs, it has been possible to convert HIV infections as chronic treatable disease by increasing lifespan as well as quality of life of HIV infected patients.
NB:The best assured way of HIV prevention is by abstaining  from sex and unprotected sex thus preventing spread of HIV infection.
WAYS OF PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF HIV POSITIVE PERSON TO OTHER PEOPLE:
1.Always use of condo when having vaginal and anal sex.
2.Starting treatment for HIV as soon as possible and keep taking HIV medicine consistently. This lowers the chances of passing it to another person.
3.Do not share needles for shooting drugs, piercing and tattoos.
Faith Maina

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