Women, culture and the HIV epidemic in MENA

The Elephants in the Room: Sex, HIV, and LGBT Populations in MENA. Intersectionality in Lebanon; Comment on “Improving the Quality and Quantity of HIV Data in the Middle East and North Africa: Key Challenges and Ways Forward”

In response to this insightful editorial, we wish to provide commentary that seeks to highlight recent successes and illuminate the often unspoken hurdles at the intersections of culture, politics, and taboo. We focus on sexual transmission and draw examples from Lebanon, where the pursuit of data in quality and quantity is teaching us lessons about the way forward and where we are experiencing...

Ensuring HIV Data Availability, Transparency and Integrity in the MENA Region; Comment on “Improving the Quality and Quantity of HIV Data in the Middle East and North Africa: Key Challenges and Ways Forward”

In this commentary, we elaborate on the main points that Karamouzian and colleagues have made about HIV data scarcity in Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries. Without accessible and reliable data, no epidemic can be managed effectively or efficiently. Clearly, increased investments are needed to bolster capabilities to capture and interpret HIV surveillance data. We believe that th...

Gender equality is crucial to the fight for better HIV treatment access and outcomes in the MENA region

In the past 37 years, HIV/AIDS researchers have profoundly advanced our understanding of the molecular biology, biochemistry and immunology of HIV thanks in large part to the urgency, engagement, and full mobilisation of different sectors of society. We have initiated long-standing interand intra-disciplinary collaborations allowing us to understand the biology and mechanisms of this virus, whi...

Tackling HIV in MENA: Talk Is Not Enough–It Is Time for Bold Actions: A Response to Recent Commentaries

Using hepatitis C prevalence to estimate HIV epidemic potential among people who inject drugs in the Middle East and North Africa

OBJECTIVES The objective of this study is to understand the association between HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) among people who inject drugs (PWIDs) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and to estimate HIV epidemic potential among PWIDs using HCV prevalence. DESIGN/METHODS Using data from a systematic review of HIV and HCV among PWID in MENA, we conducted two analyses, stratified by H...