TOPLINE: Nearly 12% of individuals using preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention, were diagnosed with alcohol use disorder (AUD) within 6 months of initiating PrEP, whereas nearly 3% were diagnosed before initiation. Fewer than 9% of those diagnosed received any US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)–approved medication for AUD. METHODOLOGY: Researchers carried out a retrospective … Read more
Rethinking Antibiotic Prophylaxis in Orthopedic Surgery for Patients with Beta-Lactam Allergies The Shifting Landscape of SSI Prevention For decades, the standard practice in orthopedic surgery has been to avoid cefazolin, a frist-generation cephalosporin, in patients reporting allergies to beta-lactam antibiotics like penicillin. This cautious approach, though, inadvertently increased the risk of surgical site infections (SSIs). … Read more
Eight times more American young adults now take medication to protect them from HIV than a decade ago, a new study finds. But even with this positive news about increasing use of pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP, the study also suggests that health care providers and public health agencies could do more to promote consistent use … Read more
Researchers from the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) presented results from the HPTN 094 (“INTEGRA”) study at the 2025 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in San Francisco. The main findings from this randomized controlled trial that enrolled persons who inject drugs showed that similar numbers of participants were on medication for opioid use … Read more
New recommendations address advances in immunosuppressive therapies and highlight antiviral prophylaxis for high-risk patients. Study: AGA Clinical Practice Guideline on the Prevention and Treatment of Hepatitis B Virus Reactivation in At-Risk Individuals. Image Credit: Josep Suria / Shutterstock.com In a recent study published in Gastroenterology, researchers update clinical practice guidelines for how to prevent and monitor … Read more
TOPLINE: The use of valaciclovir as prophylaxis prevents herpes zoster (HZ) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) receiving anifrolumab treatment, with no cases of zoster reported during the follow-up period in patients receiving valaciclovir. METHODOLOGY: Anifrolumab, a human monoclonal antibody binding to type I interferon receptor subunit 1, increases the risk for HZ in … Read more
Doxycycline postexposure prophylaxis (doxyPEP) has the potential to substantially reduce real-world population-level incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), a study in JAMA Internal Medicine suggested. This conclusion was reached by Stephanie E. Cohen, MD, medical director of the San Francisco City Clinic, Department of Public Health in San Francisco, and colleagues after examining STI trends … Read more
Every week, 4000 young cisgender women aged 15-24 years contract HIV globally, according to 2023 data. Infections in this age group accounted for 44% of the new global infections that year, highlighting the vulnerability of this population to AIDS. Despite these alarming figures, awareness of and access to preventive measures, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) … Read more