December, a month dedicated to the fight against HIV/AIDS in Gabon, is punctuated by several activities carried out by the National Program for the Control of Sexually Transmitted Infections and HIV-AIDS (PNLIST) and the Ministry of Health, which is headed by Professor Adrien Mougougou. Thus, from December 2 to 19, 2024, an HIV screening caravan and free care for PLHIV took place, during this operation 194 CD4 and viral load test vouchers were distributed, tells us the health promotion in Gabon at the end of its assessment.
Resolutely committed to fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030 as desired by the United Nations (UN), Gabon continues to deploy to achieve this objective. To do this, from December 2 to 19, 2024, a vast operation aimed at free screening and raising awareness among a larger number took place in Greater Libreville and simultaneously in the hinterland. Which operation enabled the deployed teams to offer PLHIV 194 CD4 and viral load test vouchers.
What is the viral load and CD4 test?
As part of the medical monitoring of HIV/AIDS infection, once a patient is declared positive, the health professional has additional examinations carried out to assess the severity of the infection before starting treatment. This is the examination to assess the state of the immune defenses, therefore the examination of CD4 and the viral load which makes it possible to assess the quantity of HIV in the blood. Examinations which are not very often accessible to people living with HIV because they are considered too expensive for this vulnerable segment of the population.
Thus, thanks to this campaign, PLHIV who leave the care circuit after screening and examinations are immediately put on treatment. It is important to emphasize that during the free screening caravan, 2,109 people were screened, 46 people tested positive for HIV/AIDS and 7 were undetermined. An initiative to be encouraged in order to reduce the prevalence of this disease which is 3.6% in Gabon.
