PEP, PrEP and U=U

PEP: afta exposure

PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis: HIV medicine wey you go take afta exposure to stop di virus) na short course of HIV medicines. You go take am afta possible exposure (wen HIV fit don enter your body), so di virus no go fit settle for your body as infection. You go take am every day for 28 days.

How to get am

• Go emergency department (A&E) for hospital, urgent care center, or sexual health clinic and tell dem say you need PEP.
• Dem go ask you about di exposure and dem go do baseline HIV test (di first test wey dem go use compare later) for you. You no need to wait for di result before you start.
• Take every dose for di full 28 days. Side effects for di medicines wey dem dey use now dey usually mild.
• Dem go do follow-up HIV test for you about 4 to 6 weeks and 12 weeks afta di exposure.

More details dey for how to get PEP.

Who e dey for

Dem dey recommend PEP afta exposure wey get real risk, like sex without condom or sharing needle, wit person wey get HIV wey nobody sabi say im viral load don suppress (don low well wit treatment). If you no know di oda person status, dem go decide based on your own case. Dem still dey use am afta sexual assault (rape or any sex wey dem force you do). Health worker go help you decide based on di details.

PrEP: before exposure

PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis: HIV medicine wey you dey take before any exposure to protect yourself) na medicine wey pipo wey no get HIV dey take so dem no go get am. If you take am as doctor tok, e dey lower di risk from sex by about 99% for anal sex and about 90% for vaginal sex. E dey lower di risk from injection drug use by at least 74%.

Options

• Daily pills. Na di option wey you fit find for most places.
• Event-driven pills (“2-1-1”). You go take dem around di time of sex. Na option for some men wey dey sleep wit men.
• Injections. Long-acting injections wey dem dey give every two months, or two times for one year wit di newer options.

Who fit consider am

• Anybody wey im sexual partner get HIV and di partner viral load neva suppress, or wey im partner status no dey known
• Pipo wey no dey always use condom wit new partners or casual partners
• Anybody wey dem diagnose wit STI (sexually transmitted infection, wey be infection wey dey pass through sex) for di last six months
• Pipo wey dey inject drug and dey share equipment
• Anybody wey don use PEP more than one time

PrEP need regular HIV test and check-up. If you just finish PEP course and you expect say more exposures go happen, many times you fit move straight go PrEP.

U=U: Undetectable = Untransmittable

Wen person wey get HIV dey take treatment and e keep im viral load (how much HIV dey di blood) undetectable (di HIV for blood don low reach where test no fit see am: under 200 copies per milliliter), e no dey pass HIV give anybody through sex. Big studies of couples wey one partner get HIV and di oda one no get, no find any case wey HIV pass from partner wey im viral load don suppress, even across many thousands of times wey dem get sex without condom.

To reach undetectable viral load fit take up to six months of treatment, and to stay there depend on say you dey take treatment every time without skipping. U=U na for sex; dem neva establish am for sharing needle, so sharing needle still get risk. Read more for U=U: Undetectable = Untransmittable.

How dis tins dey show for your estimate

For di calculator, PrEP and PEP each dey reduce di estimate based on how well you take dem and how fast you start PEP. Di effect of PrEP still depend on di type of exposure. Partner wey im viral load undetectable dey make di risk from sex zero. Di methodology page get di exact figures.