Has anyone looked at real people, outside the lab, to see if an effect of hormonal contraception on HIV transmission is really taking place?
Yes – but the results are mixed. Some studies have found no link, while others – conducted among sex workers, not among women in general – have found that using hormonal contraception increased a woman’s chances of contracting HIV, increased the likelihood of an infected woman spreading the virus to her sexual partners, and increased the speed at which disease developed in HIV-positive women. But it isn’t at all clear that the results of the studies among sex workers apply to women, in general –and there are additional problems. For one thing, many researchers have pointed out that women who use HC might be different from women who do not use HC in other ways, as well. For example, HC users might have more frequent sex, have more sexual partners, use condoms less frequently, and/or engage in more risky sexual practices. If any of these things are true, then the effect that HC seems to be having on HIV may, in reality, be an effect of these other behaviors on HIV instead. And since peop
Related Questions
- Has anyone looked at real people, outside the lab, to see if an effect of hormonal contraception on HIV transmission is really taking place?
- Is all hormonal contraception the same? Is all hormonal contraception implicated in possible effects on HIV transmission?
- When did scientists become concerned that hormonal contraception might affect HIV transmission?
