It involves a periodic injection as opposed to a daily pill.
Frederick, Md (KM) At one time, being diagnosed with HIV/AIDS was often a death sentence. But there have been a number of treatments developed over the years that control the virus and its impact on the body.
Kenneth Melnick, the Disease Prevention Specialist for the Frederick County Health Department, says in the past, patients took one pill each day to the control the virus. Now they can get an injection every other month. He says it helps reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS in patients and other individuals. “It also reduces the viral load to an undetectable level, and that makes it so they can’t spread the disease to others, ” he says,.
Melnick says this medication is covered by insurance. “There are case management teams out there throughout the country who help people with insurance issues. Medicaid does cover it. It may be difficult to get it in some rural areas where it might not be as accessible as in big cities,” he says
In Frederick County, Melnick says there are only two infectious disease specialists in the area. . He says the Health Department doesn’t offer this vaccination against HIV/AIDS, and many patients must travel to Baltimore or Hagerstown to receive it.
Despite the injections, Melnick says you still need to be cautious when it comes to HIV/AIDS. “It’s still mainly a sexually transmitted disease. But some people might get it by sharing needles. It can be particularly spread quickly in an intravenous drug community,” he says.
It’s still important for individuals who are sexually active or use drugs intravenously to be tested for HIV/AIDS. “A lot of STD’s {sexually transmitted diseases} may not have Symptoms. So the only way to know if you have had an exposure is to get a test,” he says “A lot of times STD’s travel in packs and when we look at the data, we see someone might BE getting chlamydia or gonorrhea, we try to get them on PERP before they might contract HIV.”
PERP stands for Post-Exposure Prophylactic which is a one-a-day pill that those at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS can take to protect themselves. Melnick says it’s 99.7 percent effective.
The Frederick County Health Department offers free walk-in testing at its facilities at 350 Montevue Lane Tuesdays and Fridays from 9:00 AM until 3:00 PM. Residents can also make an appointment to be tested by calling 301-600-3117.
By Kevin McManus