23.07.2007 – 03:48

Boehringer Ingelheim

International Experts and Women Living With HIV Discuss Urgent Needs of HIV-Positive Women at International AIDS Society (IAS) Congress

Sydney, Australia (ots/PRNewswire)

• Panelists Available For Interviews
• For Immediate Release: Webcast Will Be Available At: Http://Link.Viostream.Com/?A02deceb-Ecf4-4d9f-9118-F5f60faef629

Women Living Positive, a roundtable discussion at the IAS congress
in  Sydney, featured the perspectives of an international panel,
including  experts in HIV research and medicine, an HIV-positive
woman and a member of  Australia's National Association of People
Living with HIV/AIDS (NAPWA), on  the progress that has been made,
and what remains to be done to address the  needs of HIV-positive
women.

Francoise Barre-Sinoussi, Ph.D., director, Regulation of
Retroviral Infections Unit, Virology Department, Institut Pasteur,
Paris, France, where the HIV virus was discovered, revealed the
increasing complexity of HIV infection trends in women worldwide:

    -- There are approximately 40 million people living with HIV worldwide
       and 17.7 million of these are women, but research, policy and
       prevention efforts are still behind in adjusting the focus to meet
       their needs.
    -- Biologically, women are more likely to get infected with HIV. When
       having unprotected heterosexual sex, women are as many as eight times
       more likely to become infected with HIV than men.
    -- Women are often the primary caregivers in a family and therefore may
       have different pressures and responsibilities than men. In some
       countries, HIV has significantly increased the burden of care for many
       women. Poverty and poor public services have also combined with HIV to
       turn the care burden for women into a crisis with far-reaching social,
       health and economic consequences.

Sharon Walmsley, M.Sc., M.D., professor of medicine, University of
Toronto, senior scientist, Toronto Hospital Research Institute, and
director, Clinical Research, Immunodeficiency Clinic, Toronto
Hospital, Canada, emphasized the unique treatment needs of
HIV-positive women:

    -- HIV medications can affect women differently than men. Women exhibit
       different characteristics from men for many of the complications of
       antiretroviral therapy.
    -- Because more than half of all pregnancies are unplanned, it is vital
       that HIV-positive women and their physicians incorporate family
       planning into their discussions when initiating therapy and evaluate
       options that will be appropriate if they become pregnant because some
       medications, such as Viramune(R) (nevirapine), are preferred for use
       for women of childbearing age.
    -- There is no such thing as a "one size fits all" medication. It is
       important to assess family history and the presence of other illnesses
       such as diabetes, liver, kidney or heart disease, and depression, as
       these can help guide the selection of a treatment regimen that will
       work best for the individual.

Sarah W., an HIV-positive woman, shared her personal story of
living with the disease, as well as the keys to success that have
helped her remain healthy:

    -- When I was first diagnosed I was told that HIV was a death sentence
       and I would not live past Christmas. That was 22 years ago. Since then
       I have had two healthy children.
    -- It is essential for women to become actively involved in their care,
       and to make sure that their physician treats them as a partner when
       making decisions affecting their health
    -- With the right treatment, it is possible to safely carry a child as a
       positive woman on antiretroviral therapy, but it requires an honest
       and open discussion between women and their physicians.

Katherine Leane, co-chair, Positive Women's Network, NAPWA
Australia, discussed the need for more resources and support groups
catering to the needs of HIV-positive women:

    -- AIDS Service Organizations are a crucial source of support for
       positive women. More so than men, HIV-positive women in Australia
       often find themselves simultaneously managing illness, work and
       parenting responsibilities, and need support systems to help them
       cope.
    -- Physicians, support groups and government can ensure that women at
       risk choose to come forward for testing, secure in the knowledge that
       they can get the support and care they need by providing better
       information, better support and counseling, and by supporting women's
       rights.

Roundtable organized by Boehringer Ingelheim.

Contact:

Catey Laube, on-site at IAS, +1-212-537-8247, or mobile,
+1-646-771-9723, claube@gcigroup.com, Lauren Graham, in New York,
USA, +1-212-537-8129, lgraham@gcigroup.com, both for Boehringer
Ingelheim