WHAT IS THE MEANING OF HIV DISCORDANT SEXUAL PARTNERS? PRE-EXPOSURE PROPHYLAXIS (PrEP) FOR DISCORDANT SEXUAL PARTNERS
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP is a course of HIV drugs taken by HIV- negative people to prevent infection. This is the case of a client who was HIV+, but refused to tell her partner, unknowingly to the partner, he contacted the disease through unprotected sex.
At the end of it all, the husband got to know his wife infected him with HIV. This became a problem for her afterwards. Now, this is where I am going; when your partner is HIV negative – Finding out that you have HIV doesn’t mean an end to relationships with HIV negative partners. These relationships are sometimes called serodiscordant.
Whether you were diagnosed with HIV during a relationship, or you knew you were HIV positive when the relationship started, it’s important for your partner to know their status too.
Remember that if you’re on treatment and have an undetectable viral load, you can’t pass on HIV.
Telling your HIV negative partner about your status;
You may find it difficult to tell a partner that you have HIV, but not telling a partner can lead to problems later.
This used to be more of an issue when we understood less about the link between viral load and infectiousness. We now know that if you’re taking HIV medication and have an undetectable viral load, you can’t pass on HIV.
If you have a detectable viral load, have unprotected sex and don’t tell your partner, they may be angry that they weren’t told sooner.
If you don’t tell your partner about your status and they subsequently contract HIV as a result of having unprotected sex with you, you could be prosecuted.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (or PrEP) is a way for people who do not have HIV but who are at very high risk of getting HIV to prevent HIV infection by taking a pill every day.
When someone is exposed to HIV through sex or injection drug use, these medicines can work to keep the virus from establishing a permanent infection.
When taken daily, PrEP is highly effective for preventing HIV. Studies have shown that PrEP reduces the risk of getting HIV from sex by about 99% when taken daily. Among people who inject drugs, PrEP reduces the risk of getting HIV by at least 74% when taken daily. PrEP is much less effective if it is not taken consistently.
As PrEP only protects against HIV, condoms are important for the protection against other STDs.
Condoms are also an important prevention strategy if PrEP is not taken consistently.
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Having challenges getting your partners support?
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#You/We are HIV positive but you/we are not HIV#
Credit: David Osas
