View source for HIV

'''HIV''' is an initialism that stands for ''human immunodeficiency virus''.

HIV is a sexually transmitted infection (STI). Persons who are infected with HIV frequently exhibit ''autoimmune deficiency syndrome'', better known by its own acronym ''[[AIDS]]''.

HIV was identified in 1981. It is thought to have originated in Africa.

==Attempts to link lack of circumcision to HIV infection==

Despite the known [[Immunological and protective function of the foreskin| immunological functions]] of the [[foreskin]], certain [[:Category:Promoter|promoters of male circumcision]] attempted to link HIV infection to lack of [[circumcision]]. [[HIV trials in Africa|Three randomized controlled trials (RCTs)]] were carried out in Africa in an attempt to prove their hypothesis. 

Green et al. (2008), in a preliminary report, published a long list of methodological issues with the RCTs.<ref name="green2008">{{REFjournal
 |last=Green
 |first=Lawrence W.
 |init=LW
 |author-link=
 |last2=McAllister
 |first2=Ryan S.
 |init2=RS
 |author2-link=Ryan McAllister
 |last3=Peterson
 |first3=Kent W.
 |init3=KW
 |author3-link=
 |last4=Travis
 |first4=John W.
 |init4=JW
 |author4-link=John W. Travis
 |etal=no
 |title=Male circumcision is not the HIV ‘vaccine’ we have been waiting for!
 |trans-title=
 |language=
 |journal=Future HIV Therapy
 |location=
 |date=2008
 |volume=2
 |issue=3
 |article=
 |page=
 |pages=193-9
 |url=http://www.futuremedicine.com/doi/full/10.2217/17469600.2.3.193
 |archived=
 |quote=
 |pubmedID=
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=10.2217/17469600.2.3.193 
 |accessdate=2021-11-29
}}</ref>

''Medical News Today'' (2008) reported that a medical study found that circumcision is not effective in preventing infection in men who have sex with men.<ref name="MNT2008">{{REFnews
 |title=Circumcision Not Effective In Preventing HIV Among MSM, Study Finds
 |url=https://www.cirp.org/news/2008/2008-10-09_medicalnewstoday.php
 |last=Anonymous
 |first=
 |init=
 |publisher=Medical News Today
 |date=2008-10-09
 |accessdate=2024-07-26
 |quote=According to the study, there was minimal difference in HIV infections between those MSM who were circumcised and those who were not 
}}</ref>

[[Gregory J. Boyle|Boyle]] & [[George Hill|Hill]] (2011) studied their reports and found disabling methodological and statistical errors that invalidated their purported findings.<ref name="boyle-hill2011">{{BoyleGJ HillG 2011}}</ref>

A circumcision program in Kenya failed to reduce the incidence of HIV infection. In fact, the incidence of infection rose from 3.5% to 3.8%. The circumcision program was deemed to be a total failure.<ref>{{REFnews
 |title=Big Blow as circumcision of LUO MEN fails to reduce HIV/AIDS infections in Nyanza
 |url=https://www.cirp.org/news/2013/2013-09-11_kenyandailypost.php
 |last=Anonymous
 |first=
 |init=
 |publisher=The Kenyan Daily Post (Nairobi)
 |date=2013-09-13
 |accessdate=2024-09-13
 |quote=However, according to the new survey, the efforts seem to have exacerbated the situation as HIV infection increased from the previous 14.9% to 15.1%.
}}</ref>

[[Robert S. Van Howe|Van Howe]] & [[Gregory J. Boyle|Boyle]] (2018) further elaborated on these findings and suggested possible coordination between the RCTs and hinted at the possibility of fraud.<ref name= "vanhowe2018">{{REFjournal
 |last=Van Howe
 |first=Robert S.
 |init=RS
 |author-link=Robert S. Van Howe
 |last2=Boyle
 |first2=Gregory J.
 |init2=GJ
 |author2-link=Gregory J. Boyle
 |etal=no
 |title=Meta-analysis of HIV-acquisition studies incomplete and unstable 
 |journal=BJU Int
 |location=
 |date=2018-10-31
 |volume=
 |issue=
 |pages=
 |url=https://www.bjuinternational.com/letters/meta-analysis-circumcision-incomplete-unstable/
 |archived=
 |quote=Given the effectiveness of condoms, the lack of consistent findings on national levels, the methodologically flawed RCTs, the lack of translational research, and the impressive potential uptake and effectiveness of pre-exposure prophylaxis, circumcision as an intervention to prevent HIV infection should be treated with greater scepticism.
 |pubmedID=
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=
 |accessdate=2021-11-24
}}</ref>

PEPFAR (2025) has scrapped its ineffective and harmful "voluntary male  medical circumcision" (VMMC) program after 15 years and at least 27,000,000 harmful and useless [[foreskin]] amputations.<ref name="gwarisa2025">{{REFnews
 |title=New PEPFAR Waiver Scraps Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision Program
 |url=https://healthtimes.co.zw/2025/02/07/new-pepfar-waiver-scraps-voluntary-medical-male-circumcision-program/
 |last=Gwarisa
 |first=Michael
 |init=
 |author-link=
 |publisher=Healthtimes
 |website=
 |date=2025-02-07
 |accessdate=2025-02-16
 |format=
 |quote=
}}</ref> The [[United States]] government will no longer pay for harmful circumcisions in Africa.

== Population-based studies ==
{{Population-based studies}}

==Two African surveys==
The previously reported studies were from developed Western nations. Now we have information from Sub_Saharan Africa.

French scientist [[Michel Garenne]], Ph.D. has published two reports in 2022 comparing the incidence of HIV infection in [[circumcised]] and [[intact]] men.

In his first report, Garenne presented the findings from a study in Lesotho, the enclave in South Africa. He reported:
<blockquote>
In couple studies, the effect of circumcision and VMMC on HIV was not significant, with similar transmission from female to male and male to female. The study questions the amount of effort and money spent on VMMC in Lesotho.<ref name="garenne2022A">{{REFjournal
 |last=Garenne
 |first=Michel
 |init=M
 |author-link=Michel Garenne
 |title=Changing relationships between HIV prevalence and circumcision in Lesotho
 |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35373731/
 |date=2022-04-04
 |journal=J Biosoc Sci
 |volume=online ahead of print
 |pages=1-16
 |DOI=10.1017/S0021932022000153
 |pubmedID=35373731
 |accessdate=2022-10-28
}}</ref> 
</blockquote> 

In his second report, Garenne (2022) presented information from six Sub-Saharan African nations (Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe). He reported:
<blockquote>
 "Results matched earlier observations made in South Africa that [[circumcised]] and [[intact]] men had similar levels of HIV infection."<ref name="garenne2022B">{{REFjournal
 |last=Garenne
 |first=Michael
 |init=M
 |author-link=
 |etal=no
 |title=Age-incidence and prevalence of HIV among intact and circumcised men: an analysis of PHIA surveys in Southern Africa
 |trans-title=
 |language=
 |journal=J Biosoc Sci
 |location=
 |date=2022-10-26
 |season=
 |volume=
 |issue=
 |article=
 |page=
 |pages=1-13
 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-biosocial-science/article/abs/ageincidence-and-prevalence-of-hiv-among-intact-and-circumcised-men-an-analysis-of-phia-surveys-in-southern-africa/CAA7E7BD5A9844F41C6B7CC3573B9E50
 |archived=
 |quote=
 |pubmedID=36286328
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=10.1017/S0021932022000414 
 |accessdate=2022-10-27
}}</ref></blockquote> 
{{SEEALSO}}
* [[Circumcision and HIV]]

{{REF}}

[[Category:Acronym]]
[[Category:Initialism]]
[[Category:Disease]]

[[de:HIV]]