The infected partner had to be well enough GW786034 in vivo not to require immediate ART. The couples were randomised to have either immediate or delayed ART. Both groups received the same care including counselling on safe sex practices, free condoms, treatment for sexually transmitted infections and regular HIV testing. In May 2011, it had been announced that there had been 27 HIV transmissions in the delayed ART group (877 couples) compared to only 1 in the immediate ART group (886 couples), a 96% reduction. In these 28 cases, the HIV strain was linked to the partner. This is the first randomised clinical trial to show that treating an HIV-infected individual

with ART can reduce the risk of HIV transmission to an uninfected partner. Even with “safer-sex” counselling,

there were 60 pregnancies in the delayed ART group, despite that group having more incentive for safer-sex. Following the announcement of this result, all infected participants were offered ART. Myron reported the 10th annual review of this study. In the delayed ART group, there had been a total of 28 cases TSA HDAC supplier of HIV transmission with the HIV strain linked to the partner and 11 cases of unlinked transmission. In the one case of HIV transmission in the immediate ART group, infection had been detected at day 85 of the study and further investigation suggested that the infection event was on day 1. Clearly, early ART is highly beneficial. CDC guidelines now recommend that all Farnesyltransferase HIV infected patients should have ART. Anna Lok, University of Michigan, MI, USA The number of people infected with HBV world-wide, as estimated

by the WHO and CDC in 2007, was between 223 and 240 million, but was declining due to vaccination. In the USA, vaccine use has led to a steady decline in the rate of new infections, decreasing from about 10/100,000 residents in the 1980s to about 1/100,00 today. In contrast, the prevalence of chronic hepatitis B among immigrants remains high, with no decreasing trend. When infection is acquired early in life, chronic infection is the norm. High viral load is associated with progression to liver cancer. There are 7 FDA-approved drugs to treat chronic HBV infection, including entecavir (ETV), emtricitabine (FTC) and TDF. With several years of continuous therapy, HBeAg loss is achieved in about 40% of patients but HBsAg loss (the ultimate goal, seen as a “cure”) is still a distant prospect for most patients. However, cirrhosis can be reduced by long-term antiviral treatment. In one TDF trial at 5 years, 344/348 patients had a liver biopsy which showed that 73% of patients had improved fibrosis scores (⩾2 units) and that most other patients had no worsening. TDF has now been used for 6 years without detecting HBV resistance, making it one of the first line drugs.