Study supports link between injectable hormonal contraceptive and HIV risk

A meta-analysis has found that women who use depot medroxyprogesterone acetate, commonly known by its brand name Depo-Provera, have a moderately raised risk of becoming infected with HIV.1 The study, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, found that the risk was not increased among users of oral contraceptive pills, combined oral contraceptives, or norethisterone enantate.

Researchers from the University of California at Berkeley looked at data from 12 observational studies in sub-Saharan Africa involving 39 560 women. Use of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate was found to increase a woman’s risk of acquiring HIV by 40% (pooled hazard ratio 12.40 (95% confidence interval 1.16 to …