A new anti-AIDS strategy?
Leading scientists fighting the world's worst Aids epidemic have called on African leaders to head a month-long sexual abstinence campaign, saying it would substantially reduce new infections.
Epidemiologists Alan Whiteside and Justin Parkhurst cite evidence that a newly infected person is most likely to transmit HIV in the month after being exposed to it. An abstinence campaign could cut new infections by up to 45%, they say – a huge step in countries such as South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Swaziland.
Unlike most abstinence campaigns, this one requires only a month of adherence [TC: does it break the chain or just postpone it? It depends why transmission is so likely in the first month]. A month with condoms could have similar effects. Will it happen? The full article is here.