Vaginal microbicides: An overview

It is estimated that more than 340 million new cases of curable sexually transmitted infections occur every year throughout the world in men and women age (15–49years). Women bear an increasing burden of the epidemic as both caregivers for the ill and because of their heightened risk of infection due to biological, economic and social vulnerabilities. There is an urgent need for new prevention strategies that women can use themselves and initiate. A vaginal microbicide defined as substances intended to reduce or prevent transmission of HIV and/or other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) when applied topically to genital mucosal surfaces, provides a woman-controlled method applied before sex that could kill, neutralize, or block HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.