New HIV variant not a major public health threat, says UNAIDS

The newly-discovered human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) variant does not represent a major public health threat, the United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has said.

Scientists last Thursday announced the discovery of a new “highly virulent” strain of HIV in the Netherlands.

They referred to it as the subtype-B HIV-1 and dubbed it the VB variant.

According to the study, people living with the new HIV subtype experience double the rate of immune system decline (CD4 count), have higher HIV viral loads (amount of virus in the blood), and are vulnerable to developing AIDS two to three times faster after diagnosis than if they were living with other strains of the virus.

“Some 36 million people have died from AIDS-related illnesses since the start of the pandemic and 1.5 million people were newly infected with HIV in 2020. Of the 38 million people living with HIV today, 28 million are on life-saving antiretroviral therapy, keeping them alive and well and preventing transmission of the virus.”

According to the statement, Eamonn Murphy, UNAIDS deputy executive director, programme said 10 million people living with HIV worldwide are not yet on treatment, fuelling the continued spread of the virus and potential for further variants.

“We urgently need to deploy cutting-edge medical innovations in ways that reach the communities most in need. Whether it’s HIV treatment or COVID-19 vaccines, inequalities in access are perpetuating pandemics in ways that harm us all,” he said.