Stand-alone ARV programmes not enough - study

Stand-alone antiretroviral (ARV) interventions in developing countries could have an adverse affect on the pandemic, a new study has warned.

The findings, published in the latest issue of PLoS Medicine, concluded that ARVs were unlikely to stop the spread of HIV in poor countries unless they were combined with efforts to lower infection rates, such as promoting safe sex.

Researchers noted that while ARVs proved useful in decreasing the level of the virus in patients, slowed progression of the disease and improved health, they might also encourage unsafe sex.

"This paper should not be a disincentive for funding ARVs, but more a discussion of ... what compromise should be made between quality of care and treatment coverage," co-author Rebecca Baggaley of Imperial College in the United Kingdom told online science news website, SciDev.net.