Should gay men be taking a “morning after” pill to prevent STIs? The CDC thinks so.
There are many things that gay men must be aware of if they have an active sex life. Safe sex can include PrEP, PEP, condoms, hygiene standards, etc. But a morning-after pill has never crossed our radar until now.
First of all, no, we don’t need birth control. Rather a form of doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis, which the CDC (USA) believes can decrease the risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections.
Gays are generally pretty good about taking preventative medications
For those who are sexually active, PrEP is most likely a prescription you’re familiar with. It helps prevent the contraction of HIV.
Those who are HIV-positive but take medications regularly and have no viral load are also unable to transmit HIV to a partner. This is referred to as U=U (Undetectable=Untransmittable).
The CDC has new proposed guidelines. One of the studies they conducted involved 501 gay and bisexual men and trans women who were split into two groups. One group would take one dose of doxycycline following sexual activity while the other would not. The results showed that the former group had an STI rate of 10 per cent while the latter had a rate of 30 per cent.
Leandro Mena, director of the Division of STD Prevention and the National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention at the CDC, says: “STIs are pervasive and increasing rapidly in the US, and Doxy PEP has demonstrated substantial benefit in reducing new chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis infections. Doxy PEP can benefit the health of some gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, and transgender women who have increased chances of getting an STI.”
Although the research is promising, the implementation of doxycycline as a preventative measure is not suggested for everyone. In fact, the CDC states that it should only be considered for groups at high risk of STI transmission. Other concerns involve potential long-term development of antimicrobial resistance and impacts on the microbiome. Mena says, “Given potential unknowns, CDC is calling for long-term monitoring and evaluation as more data become available.”
