were tested twice a year for STIs. This would occur even with a 40 percent reduction in condom use while on PrEP.
- The estimated reduction in bacterial STI cases was attributed to frequent STI testing as part of well-delivered PrEP care that would increase the early detection of asymptomatic infections that often remain undiagnosed, untreated, and transmitted to sex partners.
- STI cases would likely increase if STIs went untreated in more than half of PrEP users, suggesting the important role of clinicians to perform this testing for their patients taking PrEP.
- Increasing STI testing frequency from twice a year to four times a year would not dramatically affect the prevention of chlamydia or gonorrhea – reducing new cases by an additional 5 percent.
CDC's comprehensive PrEP guidelines are an important tool for providers to help their patients protect themselves from HIV and ensure regular STD testing and treatment care. Bridging the PrEP information gap facing many providers is essential to realizing its full prevention potential. About one-third of primary health care providers had not heard of PrEP for HIV prevention as recently as 2015. To bridge this gap, CDC has been leading efforts to educate providers - including publication of 2014 clinical guidelines, step-by-step PrEP checklists and interview guides - as well as supporting a hotline to answer providers' questions about when and how to offer PrEP.
PrEP's effectiveness in HIV prevention is well documented. This new study shows the potential impact that following CDC's clinical guidelines for PrEP can have on bacterial STI prevention and further clarifies the role of PrEP as part of a comprehensive HIV/STI prevention package.
For more information from CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, visit www.cdc.gov/nchhstp/newsroom.
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