HIV Drug Tenofovir Proves Safe for HIV Prevention, Study Finds

In a recent study conducted by researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), tenofovir, an HIV drug created by Gilead, proved safe when given to men determined to be at high risk of contracting the virus.

The medication was evaluated in gay and bisexual men who did not have the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a serious virus that affects 33.4 million people worldwide.

"We didn't find any increased risk of harm in medical terms, and on the behavioral side the preliminary work we've done also suggests there is no increased risk," said study leader Lisa Grohskopf, who presented the findings at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna, Austria.

The study examined the safety of tenofovir when given to 400 HIV-negative homosexual men in Boston, Atlanta and San Francisco.

The men were divided into four groups, with two groups receiving tenofovir or a placebo immediately, and two groups receiving tenofovir or a placebo nine months after the study was initiated. The scheduling of the study was set up by researchers in an effort to compare the risk behaviors of those taking a pill and those taking no medication.

According to the researchers, no serious safety concerns surfaced following the study and no severe adverse reactions were reported.

Tenofovir also proved safe in a previous study conducted on heterosexual women at high risk of contracting the virus, in Ghana, Nigeria and Carmeroon.  

Additional information about drugs and drug side effects may be found on DrugWatch.com.