The injection is now another step in taming the HIV virus and finding a cure.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first injectable treatment for HIV, The Hill reported.
The injection will be a pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and will be available to patients at-risk of contracting HIV, The Hill reported.
The injection, which is called Apretude, will be available only to at-risk adults and adolescents who weigh at least 77 pounds and have tested negative for HIV immediately beforehand, the FDA announced this week, according to Nation.
“Today’s approval adds an important tool in the effort to end the HIV epidemic by providing the first option to prevent HIV that does not involve taking a daily pill,” said Debra Birnkrant, director of the Division of Antivirals in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research in a statement.
The approval of Apretude is a major step forward for those at-risk of contracting HIV and gives a different option instead of daily oral pills like Truvada, which has been the current standard, Bloomberg reported.
The injection will be manufactured by Glaxo.
“People who are vulnerable to acquiring HIV, especially those in Black and Latinx communities who are disproportionately impacted in the U.S., may want options beyond daily oral pills,” Deborah Waterhouse, ViiV Healthcare chief executive officer, said in a statement.
With the FDA approval, Apretude is set to arrive in doctors' offices early next year, according to reports.
About 1.7 million new HIV cases are identified every year, The Hill reported.
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