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February 2019

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ARVs for women Efavirenz
Date Posted: February 20, 2019
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ARVs for women and other myths that need busting

ARVs for women and men

ARVs

By Juliet Awuor

So, the other day we were chatting with colleagues about being transgender. The conversation progressed to how transgender individuals use female ARVs to enlarge their hips. Now, that was interesting. I haven’t heard of ARVs meant for women and men. I sought to correct the misconception with the fact that I have volunteered at a Comprehensive Care Centre- HIV clinic before.

Of course, in such cases, you are careful not to appear to know so much on ARVs lest your colleague starts putting two and two together. I quickly mentioned that there’s an ARV drug that does not support a foetus is Stocrin or Efavirenz. She told me that the specifications have since changed. That I needed to check my facts. I let the matter rest because I may have been wrong.

I haven’t used Efavirenz before. In fact, I have been refusing to have doctors change me to the regime because the one I currently am on has been perfect for me for the last decade or so. Why fix something that’s not broken?

Anyway, one of the reasons I have been avoiding it is because should I get pregnant, I would have to be switched back to a more friendlier regime for pregnancy. Now a girl has to dream. I still have dreams of becoming a mother again. 

During my last clinic appointment, I was told by the doctor that the drug I am currently using, AZT is being faced out. The only information I have found is Stavudine being faced out.

Efavirenz is a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor. These drugs stop HIV from multiplying by preventing the reverse transcriptase enzyme from working. The most common side effects are fatigue, rash, nausea, dizziness, diarrhoea, headache, and insomnia. Pregnant women should avoid taking it, especially during the first three months of pregnancy. However, recent studies have shown no increase in birth defects in pregnant women taking efavirenz. This is probably why my colleague concluded that there are ARVs for women and men.

There are no ARVs for women. Some ARVs are just not suitable for pregnant mothers. It is important to get your facts straight. The argument that transgender individuals take ARVs to broaden their hips also does not hold water. They take female hormones but this is another story altogether.

Ed FGM infographic
Date Posted: February 6, 2019
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Facts about Female Genital Mutilation

End FGM

End FGM

Female genital mutilation (FGM) comprises all procedures that involve altering or injuring the female genitalia for non-medical reasons and is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women.

Facts about FGM

Source: United Nations

  • Globally, it is estimated that at least 200 million girls and women alive today have undergone some form of FGM.
  • Female genital mutilation is in decline in many countries. But if it persists at current levels, rapid population growth in countries where it is concentrated will significantly increase the number of girls subjected to it.
  • 68 million girls are at risk of female genital mutilation between 2015 and 2030.
  • Countries with the highest prevalence among girls and women aged 15 to 49 are Somalia at 98 per cent, Guinea at 97 per cent, Djibouti 93 per cent and Egypt at 87 per cent.
  • FGM is mostly carried out on young girls sometime between infancy and age 15.
  • Girls who undergo female genital mutilation face short-term complications like severe pain, shock, excessive bleeding, infections, and difficulty in passing urine, as well as long-term consequences for their sexual and reproductive health and mental health.
  • Female genital mutilation is rooted in gender inequalities and power imbalances between men and women – and it sustains them by limiting opportunities for girls and women to realize their rights and full potential in terms of health, education and income.
  • Female genital mutilation violates the human rights of women and girls, contravening established principles, norms and standards including non-discrimination on the basis of sex; the rights to health, physical integrity and life; the right to freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; and the rights of the child.
  • The Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 calls for an end to FGM by 2030 under Goal 5 on Gender Equality, Target 5.3 Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation.
  • Eliminating female genital mutilation is a critical step towards realizing other SDGs, which focus on good health and well-being, safe motherhood, quality education, inclusive societies and economic growth.
  • The elimination of FGM has been called for by numerous inter-governmental organizations, including the African Union, the European Union and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, as well as in three resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly.

In July 2018, the UN Secretary-General produced the report Intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilation. It states that efforts to end these practices should also target the groups of women and girls who are most at risk, in particular, those who face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, including refugee and migrant women, women living in rural and remote communities and young girls, so as to leave no one behind.