Peak HIV/AIDS bodies have issued a joint statement that rejects the Swiss Federal Commission’s statement in February that suggested people with HIV using antiretroviral treatment should abandon condom use because of low chances for virus transmission through sexual intercourse.

The Australian Society for HIV Medicine (ASHM), the Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations (AFAO), the National Association of People Living with HIV/AIDS (NAPWA), and the National Centre of HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research (NCHECR) have lambasted the Swiss statement in UK medical journal The Lancet this week, warning that people using antiretrovirals must continue to use condoms and lube to complement their treatment.

Stevie Clayton, ACON CEO, told SX that while having an undetectable viral load does reduce the likelihood of HIV transmission in sex acts, varying factors like having an STI or the flu, or having problems with treatment, could alter the load.

“Your viral load could increase and you’re not aware of it, because it might be some time since you had your last test,” Clayton said. “Using viral load monitoring as a method of HIV prevention is not a very safe route to follow.”

An AFAO spokesman told SX: “We do not advocate this strategy as a substitute for condoms.”

Rates of infection could quadruple if people take the Swiss statement’s advice, Dr David Wilson, a NCHECR mathematical modelling expert, told The Lancet.

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