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When preventing HIV, bacteria in the vagina matter

rosie26

Senior Member
Messages
2,446
Location
NZ
Good to see research into the vaginal microbiome. I'd like to see lots more research here. This is where my ME started I believe, a changed microbiome after infection + antibiotic (pessary + oral). I think my immune system got disturbed by this change and kept trying to fix it but couldn't and then caused ME to set in years later.
 

antares4141

Senior Member
Messages
576
Location
Truth or consequences, nm
Good to see research into the vaginal microbiome. I'd like to see lots more research here. This is where my ME started I believe, a changed microbiome after infection + antibiotic (pessary + oral). I think my immune system got disturbed by this change and kept trying to fix it but couldn't and then caused ME to set in years later.
Could very well be part of the CFS puzzle.
 

RogerBlack

Senior Member
Messages
902
So a whole lot of women got HIV?? I mean for sure the placebo's?

It was a placebo controlled trial, so yes, some got HIV.
The drug was not 100% effective, so some got it in the treatment group, both due to poor usage y the woman and the drug not working 100%.
They were paid to do the study, and were having sex anyway.
I have not read the methods in detail, but it is usual for this sort of study to include medical care afterwards for adverse events, so they likely will be provided antiretrovirals free, which allows them to live a normal life, pretty much.
A total of about 8% of the women got HIV.
 

antares4141

Senior Member
Messages
576
Location
Truth or consequences, nm
It was a placebo controlled trial, so yes, some got HIV.
The drug was not 100% effective, so some got it in the treatment group, both due to poor usage y the woman and the drug not working 100%.
They were paid to do the study, and were having sex anyway.
I have not read the methods in detail, but it is usual for this sort of study to include medical care afterwards for adverse events, so they likely will be provided antiretrovirals free, which allows them to live a normal life, pretty much.
A total of about 8% of the women got HIV.
Seems to me it would be highly unethical to give somebody something telling them it would reduce their likelihood of contracting aids when the only known safe methods are abstinence, committed relationship, or protection, both the ladder which are not failsafe for obvious reasons. But to have a placebo controlled group? They won't do studies where some participants are given vaccines and the control group is not for this very reason.

I must be misunderstanding something here.
 

antares4141

Senior Member
Messages
576
Location
Truth or consequences, nm
The trial (presumably) told them that they may or may not be receiving something, not that they were.

People do have sex anyway.
If you're encouraging them, that's clearly an issue.
If people have some sense of false security they may take more risk's. To me as in my example of ethics and vaccine studies, seems to me, unethical to do this. Although I may be missing something. I'm no expert and haven't the time to dig down deep into the weeds. So I am going to assume they did nothing wrong, it just seems that way to me with my limited understanding of what they did. And that's just my uninformed opinion.
 

Grigor

Senior Member
Messages
462
Location
Amsterdam
It might be that these people were against anti conception in the first place. They just got persuaded to join this trial. Who knows.