World AIDS Day 2015 hopes to break the stigma about the disease

As a provider of numerous sexual health products and treatments, Medical Specialists® Pharmacy are proudly supporting World Aids Day 2015, which presents a fantastic opportunity for everyone around the world to unite in the huge fight against HIV and AIDS.

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) attacks the immune system; our body’s natural defence mechanism against infections and disease. Health Protection Agency statistics from 2011 showed 95% of UK diagnoses stemmed from sexual contact, according to NHS Choices – failure to use a condom during sexual intercourse being the primary factor. Those who share infected needles, syringes or other drug paraphernalia are also at a high risk.

Following infection, symptoms can take between 2 to 6 weeks to show, including common flu symptoms such as fever, sore throat, tiredness, muscular pain and a body rash may also appear. Those that believe they might be at risk should not delay in being tested.

Delaying vital critical treatment can be fatal and somebody diagnosed at a late stage is actually 9 times more likely to die within 12 months of receiving their diagnosis compared to somebody who gets tested and diagnosed at an early stage.

If HIV is left untreated or insufficiently managed, HIV then develops into AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome). At this stage the body is no longer able to fight off life-threatening infections due to the severe damage inflicted to the immune system.

According to the World Health Organisation, HIV is still a huge global public health issue. Even though the virus was only formally identified in 1984, so far HIV or AIDS has been responsible for the loss of more than 35 million lives.

Most people will have heard in the news recently that controversial Hollywood actor Charlie Sheen confirmed he was diagnosed with HIV back in 2011, putting an end to persistent rumours circulating around Hollywood. During an interview with NBC’s Today programme, the former 2 and a Half Men star said he sought medical help following consecutive nights of waking up soaking in sweat, and that his subsequent treatment has apparently rendered the virus almost “undetectable” in his system.

Sheen’s interview revealed he had paid “millions” to buy the silence of those aware of his condition, and only proved a reminder that the virus has not gone away and neither has the stigma about HIV and AIDS, with so many people reluctant to seek help initially, running the risk of receiving a diagnosis when it could be too late.

By the end of 2014, there were approximately 36.9 million people living with HIV and within the UK, an estimated 18,000 people of the 100,000 with HIV are unaware that they are living with the virus.

Every year on 1 December the National Aids Trust charity host World AIDS Day, using the day to boost people both discussing HIV and to help spread information about the virus. It is hoped that by more people talking about it, HIV will slowly lose the secrecy and stigma that surrounds it. More understanding and knowledge about HIV and AIDS, should hopefully result in less prejudice and better prevention methods.

Moreover, HIV is just one of many sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in circulation. Medical Specialists® Pharmacy can provide STD treatment for many of the more common STDs such as chlamydia, gonorrhoea and genital herpes.

In addition, Medical Specialists® can provide almost 100% accurate pregnancy tests to be used in the privacy and comfort of the person’s own home, a wide variety of condoms to suit different preferences, emergency hormonal contraception (morning after pill), other contraceptive pills, and even a chlamydia test that can be used at home and posted off for a quick analysis and result, saving the time and embarrassment of having to personally attend a clinic for a check-up.

Please note that for every prescription medication mentioned which are provided by Medical Specialists®, all patients must first undergo an online consultation with one of the GMC-registered doctors at Medical Specialists®, or send in a private prescription by post, obtained by the patient’s own doctor.

Online Pharmacy give away 1,000s of condoms in the run up to World AIDS Day

Shocking figures released ahead of World AIDS Day on 1 December reveal that roughly a fifth of those who have HIV in the UK, are unaware they are even carrying the virus.

Public Health England accumulated data from 2012 that shows 21,900 people out of 98,400 with HIV in the UK do not know they have it, with new cases reported in gay mean spiralling to an all-time record of 3,250 during last year.

Gay men account for the majority of people who have HIV, followed by black African men and women. Heterosexuals accounted for approximately 45% of new HIV cases in 2012; 2,880 in total.

Although it appears overall figures have decreased since 2011, the charity Terrence Higgins Trust have called for more action to be done to prevent the virus spreading, beginning with National HIV Testing Week, which runs from 22-29 November leading up to World AIDS Day.

World AIDS Day is an annual event dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection, and has been supported numerous times by Medical Specialists Pharmacy, and this year is no different.

This year Medical Specialists are giving away literally thousands of Skins condoms to all patients who obtain any sexual health products between 22 November and 2 December. Whether this be a clamelle chlamydia test kit, the antibiotic azithromycin for chlamydia and gonorrhoea treatment, or viagra, you will receive plenty of condoms…for free!

“Reducing undiagnosed HIV is now the single most important step we can take to halt the spread of infection in this country,” said the Terrence Higgins Trust’s acting chief executive, Paul Ward.

Mr Ward added: “Some communities are already making headway in this. Among gay men, testing rates are up, diagnoses are up, and as a result undiagnosed infection is coming down. Because of community-wide initiatives like National HIV Testing Week, hundreds more people with HIV now know their status, helping them access life-saving treatments and drastically reducing the chance of them passing the virus on. We’ve come so far, but we have to keep going. We know testing works and treatment works; all we need is the individual commitment and public funding to make it happen. If we can get this, we can turn the tide of the epidemic.”

Many people see ‘HIV’ as an abbreviated disease that they hope they never contract, whilst not actually understanding a lot about what it is, who is at risk, or the dangers of letting the virus go untreated.

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) attacks the immune system; our body’s natural defence mechanism against infections and disease. Health Protection Agency statistics from 2010 showed 95% of UK diagnoses stemmed from sexual contact, typically not wearing a condom during sexual activity is the cause. Sharing infected needles, syringes or other drug paraphernalia are also risk factors for HIV.

After infection, symptoms usually take between two to six weeks to arise and they include the common flu symptoms such as fever, sore throat, tiredness, muscular pain and also you could develop a body rash. If you believe you might be at risk then you should go for a test immediately and do not delay.
Delaying vital critical treatment can be fatal and somebody diagnosed at a late stage is actually nine times more likely to die within twelve months of receiving their diagnosis compared to somebody who gets tested and diagnosed at an early stage.

If HIV is left untreated or insufficiently managed, HIV then develops into AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome). At this stage the body is no longer able to fight off life-threatening infections due to the severe damage inflicted to the immune system.

National HIV testing week is a hugely important week and Medical Specialists hope that people shed the stigmas attached to HIV and AIDS, and to get tested immediately if they think they might be at risk. There is never any shame in seeking help for anything, especially when it comes to your health, and it could just save your life.

FDA gives the green light for HIV preventive medication

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is one of the world’s most deadly infections. It starts by attacking the body’s immune system (our natural defence against infection and disease). If left untreated, HIV can then develop into AIDS, meaning the sufferer is at a very high risk of catching infections due to the weakened immune system and in particularly the risk of pneumonia or cancer is huge. The disease is primarily transmitted by unprotected sex, contaminated blood transfusions and hypodermic needles, or from an infected mother to baby during pregnancy or breastfeeding.

In 2010 it was estimated that 34 million people around the world have HIV. It is especially prominent in middle to low income countries, however even in the UK it is believed 86,500 people have HIV and in 2009 there were 6,630 new cases diagnosed. The disease is often described as a ‘pandemic’ and is one of a number of conditions that is a massive global issue for health authorities to try and tackle such as asthma, malaria, cardiovascular disease and obesity.

With all this in mind, a milestone may have been reached on Monday when U.S. health regulators the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave their approval to an existing medication to be used as a preventive measure, which could potentially drastically reduce the risk of contracting HIV. ‘Truvada’ as it is named, is a small blue tablet that is to be taken once daily. It has been manufactured by the Californian pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences since 2004 for those who already have the virus.


Indeed one study conducted back in 2010 showed that Truvada reduced the risk of HIV in healthy gay men by 42% when used with condoms and the men were given counselling as well. Also in a clinical study involving heterosexual couples in Africa, a 75% decrease in transmission rates was evident. For this study, one partner had HIV, whilst the other did not.

Before receiving a prescription for the medication, patients must undergo a HIV test to make sure they do not already have the disease. There are concerns that the virus could develop a resistance to the drug, which those who are currently infected already take together with another drug. One major stumbling block for the average person will obviously be the financial aspect of the medication. Gilead Sciences say that just one year’s supply will set you back a whopping $13,900. Although financial assistance is available for HIV-positive patients, those testing negative will have to shell out for the entire cost.

Despite the promising signs shown in the clinical trials, there are those who are against the FDA’s ruling, fearing it could pave the way for a reckless attitude when it comes to sexual health. Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation in Los Angeles, told reporters in a conference call, “Today marks a catastrophe in the fight against HIV in America. If you look back five years from today, you will see this decision by the FDA will cause there to be more infections, not less.”

However, FDA officials have spoken out and counteracted Weinstein’s predictions. Dr Debra Birnkrant, FDA’s director of antiviral products, said, “What we found was that condom use increased over time and sexually transmitted infections either remained at baseline levels or decreased. So in essence, we don’t have any strong evidence that condoms were not used or there was a decrease in condom use.”

As highlighted by Dr Birnkrant’s statement, condom use in men is vital to absolutely minimising the risk of contracting HIV, or many sexually transmitted infections that are currently rife such as chlamydia, gonorrhoea, herpes and many more. Medical Specialists Pharmacy made the headlines on Gay UK News last year after we teamed with Mates Condoms to give away free condoms for one week to all men who obtained any erectile dysfunction medications such as Viagra. This was to promote World AIDS Day on 1 December, and you can read more about that within the ‘in the press’ section of our website. We also promoted World AIDS Day back in 2010 when we joined forces with Skins Condoms to give away condoms for one week.

If you do suspect you have chlamydia, Medical Specialists Pharmacy offer the Clamelle chlamydia test kit from just £24.85, which can be used in the privacy of your own home to avoid an embarrassing visit to your GP. Or, if you have been confirmed as having this or gonorrhoea, the antibiotic Azithromycin can prevent the spread of the bacteria so that your body’s natural defences can fight back and remove the infection from your system. We also have the medication Valtrex from as little as £3.50 per tablet, which works by slowing the spread of the herpes virus.

FREE CONDOMS AT MEDICAL SPECIALISTS ONLINE PHARMACY TO SUPPORT WORLD AIDS DAY

 Medical Specialists Pharmacy has joined forces with Skins Condoms to promote safe sex and HIV awareness for World Aids Day.

  

As of June 2010 there are now over 90,000 people in the UK who are living with HIV which is move than ever, and in 2009 there were 6,630 new diagnoses of HIV, some which can be contributed to not wearing a condom whilst engaging in sexual activity. This year alone there were 26,262 diagnoses of Aids in the UK and 19,457 people diagnosed with HIV have died, and over half of all people living with HIV are aged between 30 and 44, which is in-line with the average age range of men being treatment for Erectile Dysfunction online.

This is why from 1st December; Medical Specialists will be giving out free condoms for one week to each patient who buys Erectile Dysfunction treatment on-line.

Condoms are usually used for both birth control but they also reducing the risk of disease. That's why some people think that other forms of birth control -- such as the IUD, diaphragm, cervical cap or pill -- will protect them against diseases, too. But that's not true. So if you use any other form of birth control, you still need a condom in addition to reduce the risk of getting sexually transmitted diseases.

A condom is especially important when an uninfected pregnant woman has sex, because it can also help protect her and her unborn child from a sexually transmitted disease. Hopefully Medical Specialists and Skins can help raise awareness that wearing a condom could stop the spread of HIV and could even save a life.

Further information is available at their website: www.medical-specialists.co.uk