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Episode details

World Service,26 Jul 2017,26 mins

Could Injections Revolutionise HIV Care?

Health Check

Available for over a year

Could future of treatments for HIV be revolutionised by an injection? HIV/Aids researchers from around the world have been meeting in Paris this week. Anti-retroviral drugs have transformed HIV into a manageable long-term condition. But taking the medication for a lifetime could involve up to 20,000 tablets. So Professor Joe Eron and colleagues from the United States tested an injectable, slow-acting form of the medication, which releases over one month or two. The jab performed as well as the daily tablets, keeping the virus at bay. Last year 2,500 people died from opioid-related overdoses in Canada – a figure that’s grown because street heroin is now often combined with an even more powerful drug – fentanyl. Now the health minister Jane Philpott – a former doctor herself - believes it’s time for a bold, approach – to make clean heroin available to addicts. People love to watch dancers moving perfectly in time – whether it’s a ballet or a flashmob. But what’s so special about synchronised movement? Dr Guido Orgs, who’s both a lecturer in psychology at Goldsmiths University of London and a professional dancer, says audiences love it when dancers stop together, perfectly in time. Saturday Night Fever and Michael Jackson’s Thriller are famous examples of this precise art. (Photo: Getty Images)

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