The World Health Organisation (WHO) has released new guidelines for the use of long-acting injectable cabotegravir (CAB-LA) as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV and called for countries to consider this safe and highly effective prevention option for people at substantial risk of HIV infection.
CAB-LA is an intramuscular injectable, long-acting form of PrEP, with the first 2 injections administered 4 weeks apart, followed thereafter by an injection every 8 weeks. CAB-LA was shown to be safe and highly effective among cisgender women, cisgender men who have sex with men, and transgender women who have sex with men in 2 randomized controlled trials.
The guidelines, released ahead of the 24th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2022), will support countries as they plan for CAB-LA introduction as part of a comprehensive approach to HIV prevention and will facilitate urgently needed operational research.
