It鈥檚 called 鈥渢aking a T鈥� 鈥� popping pills of the anti-HIV drug tenofovir as a prophylactic before having unprotected sex. In 2005, press reports suggested gay men across the US were turning to the drug as an unproven alternative to condoms. On the gay club scene, drug dealers were reportedly selling cocktails of tenofovir, Viagra and ecstasy.
Those fears were overblown, says Albert Liu of the San Francisco Department of Public 午夜福利1000集合. Last week, at a symposium organised by the University of California, San Francisco, he described a survey of more than 1000 gay and bisexual men in which just one individual reported taking an anti-HIV drug as a prophylactic, while just 2 per cent said they knew of someone who had done so.
鈥淛ust one individual out of 1000 reported taking an anti-HIV drug as a prophylactic鈥�
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Liu鈥檚 results contrast with a survey released in July 2005 by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which suggested that up to 7 per cent of men attending gay pride events had used anti-HIV drugs in the hope of protecting themselves without using a condom.
Liu believes the wording of the earlier survey caused confusion with the established medical practice of giving a course of tenofovir to people who may have been exposed to HIV.
While it eases fears about the abuse of anti-HIV drugs, Liu鈥檚 survey also reveals complacency about safe sex. Among respondents attending 鈥渄ance parties鈥�, 53 per cent said they had engaged in unprotected anal sex in the previous six months.
