U = U

Your viral load is a measurement of the amount of HIV in a tiny sample of your blood

An undetectable viral load means there is a very small amount of virus in your blood sample; therefore, overall, you have a very small amount of HIV in your body

The ONLY way to keep your virus undetectable is to take your HIV medication every single day without missing any doses

Your viral load result will show increasing levels of the virus.

Your viral load will be checked every 6 months

NO! U=U was developed based on studies of persons who were sexually active. It does not support breastfeeding. You must follow the guidelines given by the health care staff to safeguard your baby from developing HIV.

It is possible your partner’s virus will start to increase if he is not taking medication correctly. If his virus goes from being undetectable to detectable, then you will be at risk for contracting HIV if you have unprotected sex

Yes, U=U has been shown to useful in MSM couples

Yes, there is a possibility that your partner’s HIV is not under control, in which case you could get HIV during unprotected sex

HIV medication cannot cure the virus, but it will get it under control and then keep it under control. When the virus is in small amounts in the body, your body will be healthy and you will not be able to pass the virus to your partner

The U=U studies were the HPTN 052, PARTNER and Opposites Attract studies. These studies followed heterosexual and MSM couples in where one partner was HIV positive and one partner was HIV negative. The HIV positive partner was correctly using HIV meds and was virally suppressed. During the studies, none of the HIV negative partners contracted HIV from their HIV positive partners. This therefore led to evidence that U=U.

Your viral load will be checked 6 months after you start taking your HIV meds to determine of your viral load is undetectable.

Your partner’s viral load will be checked in 6months to determine of it is undetectable. Until that time, your partner should use condoms.