Reproductive Health and New Technologies in Africa: Horizon Scanning for New Technologies

Abstract

Reproductive health and new technologies in Africa: the horizon in search of new programs Men and women in developing countries must take advantage of recent advances in the development of sexual health technologies. Chlamydia screening, HPV screening and vaccination, vaccine testing of HSV-1 and the new diagnostic test for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have the potential to reduce the burden of sexually transmitted infections. Screening for chlamydia has been done in several European countries, but it is too expensive for developing countries where the problem is the prevalence of chlamydia and its complications are much more enormous. Ethical issues regarding the implementation of HPV vaccination are discussed as vaccine becomes available in rich countries. The cost of HIV testing was once very expensive for many developing countries, but the importance of this intervention in relation to the treatment of the HIV pandemic has led to improvements in the quality of screening and reductions Dramatic costs. We must learn the lessons of the HIV epidemic for the introduction of new technologies in poor resource conditions in the future. In particular, it is necessary to assess and consider the social context of the communities that should benefit from it. The development and very rapid manner of which one of two vaccines which have demonstrated, during the tests, their high efficiency in the prevention of infection in women who are infected by the major types of the human papillomavirus (HPV) has Initiated discussions on the possibility of efficacy of this vaccine in low-income countries. Consideration must be given to cost, delivery, access and acceptability of access, if new technology is introduced, but a partial or incomplete understanding of the social and cultural context aggravates the difficulties. Keywords: reproductive health, sexually transmitted infections, HPV, acceptability, Kenya Keywords: Reproductive health, sexually tranmitted infections, HPV, acceptability, Kenya