June 12, 2015 – Resistance to Testing

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Have you been tested for HIV?  Many people in the United States haven’t, even though current recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend it.  And now that the same agency has issued guidelines calling for immediate treatment for those who test positive, testing is more critical than ever.  Joseph Cofrancesco, an HIV expert at Johns Hopkins, comments.

Cofrancesco: For those who may not know they have HIV, I say that’s crazy in 2015.  Everyone needs to be tested because if you are infected we have very successful ways to treat you, you can lead a long and normal life.  Not knowing could lead to significant bad outcomes.  And then for those who are HIV infected, the message is you should be on treatment, following up with your providers, taking a regimen that works for you, so that you can live a long and healthy life and you can prevent spread to others.  :30

Cofrancesco says that since a vaccine still seems a long way away, these strategies for containing HIV must be employed, for everyone’s protection.  At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.