The first vaginal gel designed to protect women from the AIDS virus, though safe, did not prevent infection in a study of 6,000 South African women, researchers said on Monday.
The study was marred by low use of the gel, which could have undermined results, the researchers said. Women used it less than half the number of times they had sex, and only 10 percent said they used it every time as directed.
The product, called Carraguard, is the first HIV cream to be tested in advanced trials in women and shown to be safe, raising hopes that it might be combined with drugs or other compounds to work better.
"We are disappointed that this trial did not show Carraguard to be effective; nonetheless the completion of this trial is a milestone in HIV prevention research," said Peter Donaldson, president of the New York-based Population Council, which sponsored the trial.
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