Prevention Inventions

An HIV vaccine and microbicides both have huge potential to make a difference for reproductive health—especially for women of color, who are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS.

Two new technologies would improve women's options for protection from pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections: the PATH Woman's Condom and the SILCS diaphragm.

The "no period pill" Lybrel is more about marketing than new technology, yet it has met mixed reactions ranging from questioning women's very identity without menstruation to lauding a new option for preventing periods and pregnancy.

As women become more at risk for HIV, microbicides represent a promising technology that would allow women to initiate protection from sexually transmitted infections, as well as prevent pregnancy.