Like other forms of HIV prevention, using HIV treatment as prevention must be assessed for its effectiveness, resources to carry out the plan, funds to support the program, and the targeted population that will be reached.
Using antiretroviral treatment for HIV can cause severe side effects and may lead to resistance to the drug if not taken precisely as prescribed.
Therefore, while a Swiss study in 2008 proved that if an effective antiretroviral treatment is followed by an HIV-positive person to prevent passing the virus on to their HIV-negative partner, it is completely up to the HIV-positive person whether they want to take the treatment.
The above situation is only possible if the HIV-positive individual is free of any STDs and has an undetectable viral load while taking the antiretroviral HIV treatment as prevention.
This fact was emphasized once the Swiss statement was released because it became apparent that there is a link between viral load and HIV transmission.
There is a new approach by advocates of putting an end to the AIDS pandemic, which is to test and then treat areas of generalized epidemics.
How does the "test and treat" strategy work? After individuals in highly HIV-affected areas are tested for the virus, they are to be immediately treated if diagnosed positive, whether or not their systems have been damaged.
This is the prime technique in the HIV treatment as prevention effort that will continue until 2015.
Will it work? The virus may not be detectable until the infected person has had HIV for up to three months.
A person may receive a false negative during this period of time, meaning the test reads negative even though they are indeed infected.
It is ironic that during this early phase in having the condition, an HIV-infected person is most highly infectious.
This is the biggest flaw in the effectiveness of HIV treatment as prevention.
How would individuals be affected by the treatment? Once an infected individual begins antiretroviral treatment, they must take it for the remainder of their life to avoid resistance to the drug.
The long-term side effects of this HIV treatment as prevention are still not known.
These disadvantages are the primary reasons why antiretroviral treatment is only recommended for those who already have HIV.
Is HIV treatment as prevention really feasible? While it is impossible to detect every HIV-infected person around the world-due to populations without access to HIV testing and the stigma associated with being tested for HIV-barriers are already being addressed.