Circumcision News and Research

RSS

AIDS epidemic turns 30

It is 30 years since the beginning of the AIDS epidemic. It was fatal then but has now become a treatable, if still incurable, chronic illness. AIDS therapy now has tools that prolong the lives of people infected with the virus and prevent others from acquiring it. They range from antiretroviral therapy (ART), to circumcision and campaigns to reduce promiscuity. On the horizon are gels and pills that protect against infection during intercourse. Even the outlook for an AIDS vaccine is no longer as bleak as it used to be.

31 May 2011

AVAC calls on donors, policy makers to strengthen support for AIDS vaccine research

This year HIV Vaccine Awareness Day comes at the dawn of a true prevention revolution that could finally turn the tide of the AIDS epidemic. AIDS vaccine research is a critical part of that revolution and on this day AVAC calls on donors, policy makers and others to strengthen support for AIDS vaccine research.

19 May 2011

Uganda launches PEPFAR-supported mobile male circumcision clinic

U.S. Ambassador to Uganda Jerry Lanier on Friday in Kampala launched a Mobile Medical Male Circumcision clinic, a project of the PEPFAR-supported Makerere University Walter Reed Project, New Vision reports.

17 May 2011

New circumcision treatment can reduce HIV

Promising study results published in the May issue of JAIDS show that a novel medical device has the potential to revolutionize how male circumcision services are offered in countries hardest hit by the HIV epidemic.

13 May 2011

Penile extenders represent an effective lengthening method for men

Surgeons should encourage men who request penile lengthening surgery to try non-invasive methods first and, in some cases, consider therapy to help them feel more positive about their body.

18 Apr 2011

State News: N.Y. billing for disabled patients questioned

While the nation's attention has been focused on state worker battles in union strongholds such as Ohio and Wisconsin, quiet but consequential labor battles are breaking out in Kansas, Texas and other states where collective bargaining rights for public workers were weak or non-existent to begin with. The outcome of these confrontations will have a big impact.

8 Apr 2011

New book on issues related to female circumcision

According to a new book by Professor Aud Talle, most Somalis who live in Norway have changed their attitude towards female circumcision and are now against the practice.

10 Mar 2011

Recent releases in Global Health

The Importance Of Investing In Adolescent Girls: A Lancet editorial examines the challenges adolescent girls living in developing countries face and the work of the U.N. Adolescent Girls Task Force to help young women overcome these barriers.

5 Mar 2011

Scientists at retrovirus conference present findings on microbicide gel, Truvada, male circumcision, ART care by nurses

At the annual Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in Boston on Monday, researchers "suggested the potential" of a gel containing the antiretroviral drug tenofovir to reduce the risk of anal HIV transmission, TIME's "Healthland" blog reports.

2 Mar 2011

U.N. officials call for renewed effort to stop female genital mutilation/cutting

U.N. officials on Sunday called for countries to renew their commitment to end female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), a practice which endangers the lives of women and girls, Inter Press Service reports (Deen, 2/7).

9 Feb 2011

African first ladies gather to discuss HIV/AIDS

On the sidelines of the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Monday, the General Assembly of the Organization of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS (OAFLA) gathered to discuss the continent's progress against HIV/AIDS, Walta Info reports.

3 Feb 2011

Male circumcision helps reduce rates of HPV transmission to women, study finds

"Among HIV-negative sexual partners, male circumcision helps prevent the transmission of human papillomavirus [HPV] from men to women," according to a study published online Thursday in the Lancet, HealthDay News/Bloomberg Businessweek reports.

10 Jan 2011

New guideline provides evidence-based recommendation for children undergoing tonsillectomy

A multidisciplinary clinical practice guideline, "Tonsillectomy in Children" will be published in the January issue of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

3 Jan 2011

Myths and misunderstandings about medical male circumcision for HIV prevention

A new report from the Women's HIV Prevention Tracking Project (WHiPT), a collaborative initiative of AVAC and the ATHENA Network, features an unprecedented collection of voices from Kenya, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland and Uganda reflecting on what male circumcision for HIV prevention means for women. It highlights women's perspectives, advocacy priorities and recommendations on this new prevention strategy.

14 Dec 2010

HIV/AIDS needs more funding: Report

Experts have said that just controlling HIV and AIDS would require finances to the tune of $397bn and $733bn over the next 20 years and unless more money is spent the pandemic will continue to spread. They said that funds need to increase from 2009 otherwise the infections could rise from 2.3 million a year to 3.2 million by 2031. This appeared in a report by the aids2031 financing group, headed by the Results for Development Institute in Washington DC.

8 Oct 2010

Male circumcision shown to help prevent HIV transmission

According to a new study published in the Medical Journal of Australia, male circumcision can be seen as a “surgical vaccine” in the fight against heterosexual HIV transmission. The study based on spread of the virus in Africa showed that there was a reduced rate of transmission in regions where male circumcision was the norm.

19 Sep 2010

American features series on HIV/AIDS: Prevention Strategies, MSM, Idus

A Scientific American series examines how recent scientific advances will guide future efforts to thwart HIV/AIDS and also looks at the epidemic among men who have sex with men (MSM) and injecting drug users (IDUs).

27 Aug 2010

Merck and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commit additional $60M to support Botswana's ACHAP

Merck today announced the Merck Company Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation are committing an additional $60 million to support Botswana's African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnerships (ACHAP). Merck is known as MSD outside the US and Canada. A unique program developed with and led by the Government of Botswana, ACHAP is one of sub-Saharan Africa's oldest, most successful public-private partnerships.

24 Aug 2010

FACES receives grant to expand care for HIV/AIDS people in Kenya

A joint project of UCSF and the Kenya Medical Research Institute has received $7 million-the first award of a five year grant that will total about $35 million to expand its care and support of people affected by HIV/AIDS in Kenya.The project is named Family AIDS Care and Education Services, known as FACES, and it provides a comprehensive program of HIV treatment, care, prevention and support. The grant is awarded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from funding provided through the President's Emergency Plan for HIV and AIDS Relief.

18 Aug 2010

Opinions: HIV prevention research; Foreign aid; Sanitation; Aid, self-reliance

"Microbicides, vaccines and other new approaches will one day join proven HIV-prevention strategies, including condoms, male circumcision and clean needles. How soon that day comes will depend on whether funders and the scientific community can develop the more collaborative approaches to HIV prevention research needed to address this fast-moving epidemic," Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise leaders Alan Bernstein, executive director, and Peter Piot, chair, write in a Globe and Mail opinion piece.

11 Aug 2010