– HIV is becoming more resistant to treatment in Africa.
– African drugs are becoming less effective than those in Europe.
– If you think you might have come into contact with HIV, get yourself tested immediately.
Strains of HIV are becoming resistant to an antiretroviral drug commonly used to prevent and fight the virus, research has suggested.
HIV was resistant to the drug Tenofovir in 60% of cases in several African countries, according to the study, covering the period from 1998 to 2015.
The research looked at around 2,000 HIV patients worldwide.
Lead author Dr Ravi Gupta said the results were “extremely concerning”.
The work, which took four years to complete, started in 2012 and compared patients with HIV in Africa with those in Europe.
Splitting the sample size roughly into two groups the study found that in Africa 60% of patients were resistant to Tenofovir, whereas in Europe the figure was only 20%.
The paper said poor administration of the drug, in terms of regularly taking the right levels of Tenofovir could be explanation for the discrepancy.
“If the right levels of the drug are not taken, as in they are too low or not regularly maintained, the virus can overcome the drug and become resistant,”Dr Gupta said.
While the study can’t say what causes tenofovir-resistant HIV, the researchers found the health of the immune system when treatment begins, and the other drugs in the treatment regimen, are linked to the risk of resistance.
“We certainly cannot dismiss the possibility that resistant strains can spread between people and should not be complacent. We are now conducting further studies to get a more detailed picture of how Tenofovir-resistant viruses develop and spread,”Dr Gupta said.
More than 69% of people living with HIV worldwide live in sub-Saharan Africa.
Just over 3.2% of Nigerians are known to have the HIV virus, however the real infection rate is likely to be far higher as many do not know they have the disease.
Only 21% of those infected with HIV in the country currently receive treatment.