European Internet survey of men who have sex with men (EMIS-2010), showed dramatically low level of knowledge among Russian homosexuals about post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
It is noted that their knowledge on general issues of HIV is high enough, especially in St. Petersburg. Even the knowledge about post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) there is significantly (5%) higher than in Russia as a whole.
Low level of knowledge about the PEP experts explain by the lack of availability of PEP for gay people in Russia, if they are not medical professionals.
The level of comprehensive knowledge about HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, testing and PEP among Russian gays is still very low - at 10.1%. Beyond post-exposure prophylaxis 22.6% of gay men correctly answered the rest of the questions.
As a side note, post-exposure prophylaxis is meant for prevention of HIV transmission. It is used after the risk of HIV transmission, and involves taking antiretroviral drugs used to treat HIV infection, and should start as soon as possible after exposure in order to lower the chances of virus transmission. These drugs are only available by prescription whritten by a doctor. Post-exposure prophylaxis must be taken within the first 24-36 hours after exposure, and not any later than 72 hours.