What is PrEP?

PrEP stands for “pre-exposure prophylaxis”, meaning it is a tool to stop infection (“prophylaxis”) that is taken before you are exposed to that infection.  This website is focused on PrEP for stopping HIV.

People at risk for HIV, like men who have sex with men should seriously consider PrEP along with condoms for maximum HIV prevention.

Choices for PrEP include:

Daily use of oral PrEP medication in pill form (DESCOVY, Truvada or other generic versions);

Or

Injectable long-acting PrEP (APRETUDE), injected once every two months.

Find out more about injectable long-acting PrEP (APRETUDE) at our new page: https://hivnow.ca/injectable-prep-and-hiv-treatments/

Important Note: PrEP it is not a cure for HIV and it does not protect you from other sexually transmitted infections (e.g. syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhea, HPV, hepatitis C). You should consider condoms and Doxy-PEP to prevent STIs.

For more on Doxy PEP: https://www.actoronto.org/health-information/doxy-pep-and-doxy-prep/

For more on condoms & lube: https://www.actoronto.org/health-information/campaign-1-condoms-lube/

PrEP is endorsed by the World Health Organization for people who are HIV negative (not living with HIV) and at risk for HIV infection. PrEP has been shown to be as high as 99% effective at reducing risk for HIV when taken every day (without missing a dose). 1. It is so effective that we call the risk “negligible” if a person is correctly taking their daily PrEP.

PrEP works by disrupting HIV and preventing it from establishing a foothold in the body and causing a systemic infection.

The Evolving Medications Taken When Engaging in PrEP

PrEP is an acronym that describes an overall prevention method (pre-exposure prophylaxis). This isn't a new concept: many other drugs are also taken prior to infection to prevent illness (e.g. malaria medications before travelling).