Post exposure prophylaxis(PEP) is the medical treatment given immediately after the exposure to a potential disease causing organism in order to prevent the development of the disease. The disease in this case is human immunodeficiency virus[HIV] infection. Over 36 million people are living with HIV globally as at 2014. Post exposure prophylaxis will do a bit in reducing the rate of transmission of the HIV.
WHO NEEDS TO GET PEP
- rape victims. Rape is pretty common in our environment, the victim should receive post exposure prophylaxis to prevent the possibility of contracting the dreaded disease. This is because a rapist is a potential hub of several STIs. Who knows how many people they have raped before now. Women are particularly at a higher risk of being infected after an intercourse because women are more likely to sustain micro bruises and even overt lacerations, fluid from the male partner (semen), which could contain the virus, is deposited into their body, and some immune cells (body soldiers) present in the female genital tract are readily available to interact with the virus and initiate infection. Penetrative anal intercourse has even much higher risk whether the recipient is a male or female.
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after a random unprotected intercourse. OF course ‘HIV no dey show for face’. Most people with the disease look like any other normal individual, so that random partner may actually be living with the virus and they may or even may not know.
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Health workers who get exposed especially by needle stick injuries, blood splash to the eyes or mucous membranes and other forms of exposure.
WHAT TO DO AFTER A POTENTIAL EXPOSURE TO HIV
- After any case of rape or unprotected intercourse, run to the nearest hospital not later than 72hours, but preferably immediately. It is not enough to take pills to prevent unwanted pregnancy or antibiotics to prevent other STIs after an incidence of rape, you must make deliberate efforts to prevent the main ‘ogbunigwe’, HIV himself. It is better for you to have an unwanted pregnancy than to contract HIV. Having worked in HIV unit for a while, the normal trend is for rape victims to present quite late beyond 72hours from the time of the assault. Another finding is that many of them actually never present to the hospital at all.
If a health worker is exposed to HIV
a. never try to squeeze or rub the site of injury
b. allow blood or secretions flow out freely
c. liberally wash the injury site under running water with soap or other antiseptics
d. if a splash to the eye, irrigate under running water or normal saline.
e. report to the unit concerned with managing PEP
FURTHER NOTES
In the hospital, some tests are carried out including your HIV test at presentation. This is because it takes some time before the presence of HIV can be detected after an exposure. So if you are HIV positive at presentation, it means you got the disease some time ago before the present incidence. After assessment, a particular HIV drug used for prevention will be given to you and you must adhere to the medication and take it for four weeks. HIV drugs are usually free.
Now that you know, you owe humanity to act appropriately, and to give advice to people in case of eventualities