From the continent that is by and large a basket case:
The unregulated supply of Aids drugs in the non-industrialised world threatens to accelerate the development of drug-resistant HIV strains.
That is the conclusion of a study from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, just published in the British Medical Journal.
Apparently, Africa is currently a laboratory perfectly set up to create resistance in the virus:
“These drugs are not being used according to the correct regimens. For instance, monotherapy – just giving one anti-retroviral drug – is definitely bad practice. And we see evidence of that both from Zimbabwe and Uganda, and I’m sure it’s happening in other countries too.”
Dr Brugha also found that in some places patients are changing medication frequently, taking the wrong dose, or stopping treatment in periods when they cannot afford it.
This is exactly the set of conditions in which a virus quickly becomes drug-resistant.
Every time I read about Africa, I just get depressed.