HIV Support Scotland UK - HIV Scotland UK

Welcome to this HIV/AIDS Information Resources Centre.

This web site discusses HIV and AIDS, including sexuality and relationships.
Some parts may not be suitable for children.
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This HIV/AIDS Information Resources Centre based in Scotland UK, offers free advice and information on HIV/AIDS from a personal perspective.

Whether you are Gay, Bisexual, Heterosexual or Transsexual learning to cope and live with HIV and AIDS is difficult. This site tries to show how you can live a fulfilling and happy life even with this virus.

You will find some very frank discussion of sexual behaviour and its relationship to the HIV virus. The aim of this site is not to shock but to inform and educate.

There is no cure for HIV/AIDS nor any prospect of one on the horizon, even an effective vaccine is proving very difficult to achieve. So, prevention through education and the experience of others worldwide is for the moment, the only weapon we have.

Speaking for myself, having been infected with the HIV virus back in the early 1990's, I can honestly say it changed my entire life. I'm just glad I am still here to share my experiences with you. I hope you too will feel able to share your experiences with me and the many other people who visit this site looking for advice, guidance and a little re-assurance.

HIV/AIDS Treatment News

New Gilead GS 7340-Inclusive Fixed-Dose Combo Tablet Trial Announced

Thu, Jan 26, 2012 5:00 am +0000 GMT

Gilead Sciences Inc. (Nasdaq: GILD) today announced the start of a Phase II clinical trial to evaluate a modified version of its experimental “quad” fixed-dose combination (FDC) tablet currently being reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to a company announcement.

Less than 1 in 2 HIV-Positive U.S. Residents Are in Regular Care

Wed, Jan 25, 2012 5:00 am +0000 GMT

Less than half of people living with HIV in the United States are being retained in ongoing medical care, according to a new analysis by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) investigators published online ahead of print by the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes. The sobering statistics, which include the finding that only two thirds of people testing positive for HIV are being successfully linked to medical care within a year of their diagnosis, help explain those of another recent CDC analysis indicating that only 28 percent of U.S. residents living with HIV have undetectable viral loads.

Many at Risk for Hep B in U.S. Aren't Getting Vaccinated

Tue, Jan 24, 2012 5:00 am +0000 GMT

Missed opportunities to vaccinate people at the highest risk for hepatitis B virus (HBV) explain why 80,000 people continue to be infected ever year in the United States, according to a new study published online ahead of print by the journal Infection.

Viread Approved for Children 2 and Up

Fri, Jan 20, 2012 5:00 am +0000 GMT

Viread (tenofovir), Gilead Sciences’ nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitor, has been approved for children living with HIV, according to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announcement. To facilitate correct pediatric use of the drug, the agency also approved a powder formulation for children between the ages of 2 and 5 and low-dose tablets to meet pediatric dosing needs.

Vitamin D May Protect Bone Health in Tenofovir Takers

Thu, Jan 19, 2012 5:00 am +0000 GMT

Vitamin D supplementation may help prevent hormonal changes that can lead to bone loss among adolescents and young adults being treated for HIV with tenofovir—found in Viread, Truvada and Atripla—according to a National Institutes of Health (NIH) study published online ahead of print by Clinical Infectious Diseases.

An Aspirin a Day to Keep HIV-Related Cervical Cancer Away?

Thu, Jan 19, 2012 5:00 am +0000 GMT

Might an aspirin a day help keep cervical cancer away? Though there aren’t yet any studies indicating it will, researchers have uncovered a biological connection between HIV-associated inflammation and cervical cancer that may be curtailed by the affordable and widely available drug.

Aidsmap News

Rapid HIV test performance poorer with oral fluid than blood, especially when prevalence is low

Wed, Jan 25, 2012 3:30 pm +0000 GMT

The performance of OraQuick, a widely used rapid point-of-care test for HIV diagnosis, is slightly poorer when testing oral fluid samples than when testing blood samples, according to a meta-analysis, published in the online edition of Lancet Infectious Diseases this week.The authors also found that if the test is used in low prevalence settings with

Vitamin D supplements benefit bone metabolism of younger patients taking tenofovir

Wed, Jan 25, 2012 3:00 pm +0000 GMT

Vitamin D supplementation is associated with an improvement in a key marker of bone health in HIV-positive young adults treated with tenofovir, US research published in Clinical Infectious Diseases shows. Treatment with vitamin D3 lead to a significant fall in parathyroid hormone levels, an important regulator of calcium which has a significant role in bone metabolism.

Smoking cessation counselling and treatment during routine HIV care helps patients to quit

Tue, Jan 24, 2012 10:30 am +0000 GMT

The provision of smoking cessation counselling and therapy during routine HIV care increases the chances that patients will quit smoking and stay stopped, according to Swiss research published in HIV Medicine. Physicians at the Zurich HIV clinic received training about smoking cessation counselling and the use of medication to help those wanting to quit. Compared to

English public health indicators to include late HIV diagnosis

Tue, Jan 24, 2012 9:30 am +0000 GMT

The Department of Health this week announced the 66 'indicators' with which the performance of the new public health system will be measured. To the relief of HIV campaigners, these include a measure of late HIV diagnosis. From 2013, management of the public health system in England will move from NHS primary care trusts to

Studies from US and Spain show that hepatitis vaccination programmes not reaching target populations

Mon, Jan 23, 2012 9:00 am +0000 GMT

The majority of US adults at risk of hepatitis B remain unvaccinated against this potentially life-threatening infection, according to research published in advance of print in the online edition of Infection. The research highlighted missed opportunities for vaccination, especially for individuals who had received health care while in prison. The authors express concern that vaccination

Can speeding up nevirapine clearance reduce the risk of resistance after PMTCT use?

Fri, Jan 20, 2012 4:40 pm +0000 GMT

In a bid to reduce the risk of nevirapine resistance after the use of single-dose nevirapine to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission, several research groups are now experimenting with the use of drugs that can speed up the clearance of nevirapine from the mother's bloodstream after giving birth. For example, adding single dose-carbamazepine, a cheap, readily available anti-convulsant

Common side-effects of hepatitis C protease inhibitors: clinical management advice published

Fri, Jan 20, 2012 3:30 pm +0000 GMT

The addition of the protease inhibitors telaprevir or boceprevir to hepatitis C treatment regimens increases the risk of anaemia, according to a review article published in Liver International. The author also found that telaprevir treatment was associated with an increased risk of rash and itching as well as some anorectal symptoms. However, these side-effects were

Vigilance over early weight loss on HIV treatment needed, Tanzanian study shows

Wed, Jan 18, 2012 5:10 pm +0000 GMT

Nearly one-third of patients experienced substantial weight loss in the first ten months after starting antiretroviral therapy, leading American and Tanzanian researchers to warn that health care workers in resource-limited settings need to be on the look out for the ill effects of anaemia, malabsorption and malnutrition in patients starting antiretroviral therapy. Three months after starting ART

Smoking, not immunodeficiency or lung disease, increases lung cancer risk for patients with HIV

Tue, Jan 17, 2012 8:50 am +0000 GMT

Cigarette smoking is the single most important risk factor for lung cancer in patients with HIV, Swiss investigators report in the online edition of the British Journal of Cancer. Smoking was associated with a 14-fold increase in the risk of the malignancy. Unlike some other studies, the Swiss found no evidence that either a low

Upsurge in HIV diagnoses among IDUs in Greece and Romania - are reduced prevention services the cause?

Mon, Jan 16, 2012 1:50 pm +0000 GMT

New diagnosis and prevalence of HIV increased sharply among injecting drug users in Greece and Romania in 2011, European investigators report. Several other countries in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) also reported slight increases in diagnoses or risk behaviour among injecting drug users. Increased HIV detection among injecting drug users in Greece and Romania

Latest Additions

Be sure to check out the new sections of the web site:

HIV Forum - Post questions, comments and information on HIV.
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Art Prints Store - Art prints, giclee prints, framed art, posters and canvas transfers.
HIV & Gay Books - HIV & Gay Books.
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Online Shopping Store - Books, DVD's, Music, Video Games.
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This site was last updated 3rd January, 2012

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AIDS in the Twenty-First Century Tony Barnett	The No Nonsense Guide to HIV/AIDS Shereen Usdin	Sexually Transmitted Infections David Barlow	28: Stories of AIDS in Africa Stephanie Nolen

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