Morgan West
November 10, 2010
4:30 PM
Sociology 202
There have been new developments in the fight against HIV/AIDS. South Africa has recently done many studies on a microbicide that could effectively prevent the transfer of HIV during sexual intercourse. This is a gel that women could inject into their vaginal area before having sex. Although it does not have one hundred percent effectiveness, it does have a rate of forty percent chance of protecting them from the virus. Trials are suspected to continue for two or three more years, and by 2013, hopefully the product will be on the market for use. Also the researchers are trying to develop a pill, instead of the gel, because pills have already been approved for safety. Although the pills may be safer, the gel could possibly be more effective because it remains in the tissues and also protects the women form herpes. They would also try and do studies so that the gel would be available to men. The gel would also be available for rectal uses.
This would be a huge promise for the future if the South African studies lead to a preventive way to not develop AIDS. AIDS is a global social problem, effecting millions of people. Since the bacteria is so mature and has the ability to change, developing a cure or a preventative system has been very difficult. If the gel or pills were made, and worked, it could change the whole dynamic of the world by preventing more people from developing the disease. Women and men need a safe way to have sex, without the risk of life altering diseases, and the development of this microbicide could be the key.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/09/health/09microbicide.html?ref=health
2 comments:
This gel to aid in the prevention of STD's sounds promising. The gel does sound like it would be more effective than the pill by the nature that it works, but for areas that are lacking in higher education or sex education in general I'm not sure that this product would be utilized. Especially in a society where rapes are more common, this gel would definitely not be used in these situations. It seems to me that a combination of a pill and a gel (just as a combination of oral contraceptives and condoms, etc.) would be the most effective, but anything is better than nothing.
-Shannon DeWitt
I think that this new gell is a great new invention towards the prevention of HIV or AIDS. This will help prevent the spread of the disease people in third world countries with high rates of it.
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