Hormonal Contraceptive Eligibility for Women at High Risk HIV - Guidance Statement

The World Health Organization (WHO) convened a technical consultation during 1–2 December 2016 to review new evidence on the risk of HIV acquisition with the use of hormonal contraception (1). The issue was recognized as a critical one, particularly for sub-Saharan Africa, where women have a high lifetime risk of acquiring HIV, hormonal contraceptives constitute a significant component of the contraceptive method mix and unintended pregnancy is a common threat to the well-being and lives of women and girls.

Through consensus, the GDG arrived at new recommendations for progestogen-only injectables. The recommendations for use of progestogen-only injectables among women at high risk of HIV changed from category 1 to category 2, with an accompanying clarification, in the Medical eligibility criteria for contraceptive use (MEC) (1). Recommendations for all other methods of hormonal contraception remained unchanged.