Sexually Transmitted Infections
Sexually transmitted infections are transmitted from an infected person to an uninfected person through sexual contact. STIs can be caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites and include diseases like HIV/AIDS and gonorrhea. STIs, in particular HIV, are prevalent around the world, and can sometimes require expensive, life-long treatments to maintain remission. This creates a significant economic strain which can be accompanied by political instability, particularly in developing countries. In military contexts, STIs can be a significant danger to the walking blood bank during combat casualty care, making effective screening and prevention strategies a top priority for deployed medicine. AFRIMS maintains significant medical infrastructure in Southeast Asia to track STIs to understand how pathogens evolve and how they cause disease to inform the development of diagnostics, drugs and vaccines and has led in several field-leading accomplishments including the RV144 HIV vaccine trial, currently the only HIV vaccine trial  worldwide to demonstrate partial efficacy.   

Gonorrhea

Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease that can infect both men and women. Caused by the Neisseria gonorrhoeae bacterium, gonorrhea can cause infections in the genitals, rectum and throat. Although treatable, drug-resistant forms of gonorrhea are increasing in prevalence. If left untreated, gonorrhea can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, infertility and increased risk of HIV infection. Gonorrhea can also be passed from mother to child and cause blindness or life-threatening infections in the infant. As part of its work to track and characterize multidrug-resistant organisms, AFRIMS studies works with host-nation partners to study gonorrhea across Southeast Asia.
Bacterial and Parasitic Diseases | Retrovirology 

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. Although extraordinary progress has been made in the fight against new HIV cases and AIDS deaths, currently 38 million people are living with HIV, with 1.7 million people being newly infected and 690,000 people dying from AIDS-related illnesses in 2019. It remains a significant public health threat with the potential to significantly destabilize governments and economies. In military contexts, it is a significant danger to the walking blood bank during combat casualty care, making effective screening and prevention strategies a top priority for deployed medicine. Addressing the threat of HIV to military and global populations is of critical concern to health diplomacy and international security and a challenge that requires sustained commitment to research and developing effective scientific, clinical, political, and social solutions.
Retrovirology | Veterinary Medicine