KISUMU, Kenya Aug 13 – In a bid to lower the daily infections rate of HIV/Aids in the country, researchers are keen to push for the adoption of a new prevention measure, the novel Dapivirine vaginal ring.
Dr Dismas Oketch, a researcher at Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) says researchers have been developing new HIV technologies to halt infections.
Already, the World Health Organization (WHO) early this year approved the dapivirine vaginal ring to offer an additional prevention choice for women.
Dr Oketch says the ring is a female initiated option to reduce the risk of HIV infection.
“It is made of silicone and contains dapivirine, the liquid which is contained in the ring, the antiretroviral drug dapivirine, is slowly released into the vagina for over one month,” he said.
Latest statistics show that there are 4,000 new HIV infections every single day with Keya recording 38,000 new infections last year alone.
The dapivirine vaginal ring joins other tools in the Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PreP) that includes Truvada tablets, vaginal gels, long injectables and other interventions aimed at cushioning women from contracting the virus.
Philister Adhiambo, a researcher at KEMRI demonstrates the use of a novel dapivirine vaginal ring. Photo/OJWANG JOE.
Philister Adhiambo, a researcher at KEMRI who took part in the clinical trials on the new intervention says very few women reported a fall out of the ring whenever they answered to a call of nature.
“I remember during the study period, only one woman reported that her ring would occasionally fall when on a call of nature,” she said.
Speaking in Kisumu on Thursday during a media café organized by the Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA), Adhiambo demonstrated how to put on the ring saying it must be worn inside the vagina for a period of one month, after which it is replaced by a new ring.
She noted that the new prevention measure will be ideal for women who are not keen to swallow the truvada tablets on time.
“The intervention can be offered alongside oral PreP as a choice for women who do not want to take a daily oral tablet,” she said.
“PreP is a promising intervention to prevent HIV, individually and also at a population level,” she added.
Adhiambo says the country is moving towards zero HIV infections and called for the uptake of PreP once introduced in the country to compliment public health in eliminating the virus.
She termed the new ring, the wonder pearl that has come to the rescue of women as an additional choice and options for women to choose from.
Adhiambo says currently, the ring is under review by the National Medical Regulatory Authority in a number of African countries.
“It is under review in Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, which is already rolling out the dapivirine ring,” she said.
She noted that sooner or later, the dapivirine ring will be available in the country for use among women.
Beatrice Nyagol, a research clinician at Impact Research and Development Organization (IRDO) announced that the ring is designed for girls and women from the age of 15.
Nyagol says implementation considerations and research gaps have been considered as they wait for the rollout of the product.
“When the product is introduced, the landscape, the physiological factors like stigma, negotiations and hygiene must be communicated,” she said.
She it is prudent that women are offered full information in order to make an informed choice about the benefits and potential risks when considering to use the ring.
Nyagol says the approach on adolescent girls and young women must be well thought of since most parents will advocate for interventions that can prevent early pregnancies among their daughters.
“If I am going to market this ring, will I approach it for pregnancy or through HIV, it is something that is still difficult. If you go to an adolescent and tell the parents that we are preventing HIV, maybe the parent is looking at pregnancy so that the daughter can finish school,” she said.
