NEW YORK (Reuters Health) — Many volunteers who take part in clinical trials of experimental HIV vaccines report negative social consequences because of their participation in the studies, according to a new report.

"Since a majority of the negative social impact events were due to negative reactions from friends and family who misinterpreted what a preventive HIV vaccine trial entails, trial sites need to continue their educational efforts with both study participants and with local communities emphasising that you cannot become HIV-infected from the vaccine itself and that these trials seek HIV-negative individuals to participate," Dr. Jonathan Fuchs told Reuters Health.

Fuchs, from the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and his associates evaluated the negative social impacts reported by 5417 mostly male volunteers in an HIV vaccine efficacy trial.

Just under 1000 volunteers reported negative social events during 36 months of follow-up. Most such events were negative reactions from friends, family, and partners, the authors report in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.