pre-exposure prophylaxis
noun
variants
or less commonly preexposure prophylaxis
plural pre-exposure prophylaxes also preexposure prophylaxes
: a preventive treatment for infections or diseases (such as HIV or rabies) that involves administering one or more drugs to an uninfected person who is at a high risk of exposure to a particular pathogen
If you are in a relationship with someone who has HIV, it's important to talk to your health care provider about what you can do to prevent contracting the disease. Pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, can give you the peace of mind to enjoy your relationship knowing you have taken that precaution.—
Pamela Crain
Pamela CrainTravelers should consider preexposure prophylaxis … vaccination if planned activities include encounters with domestic or wild animals, if staying longer than a month in an area where dog rabies is common, or if visiting remote areas where medical care may be delayed.—Kathryn Lincoln and Jerline Hsin
—abbreviation PrEP
compare post-exposure prophylaxis
Kathryn Lincoln and Jerline HsinExamples of pre-exposure prophylaxis in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
PrEP uptake, 2017-2022 The usage of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, among Black and Latino people in the U.S. has doubled over the past five years but still lags that of whites.
—Benjamin Ryan, NBC News, 18 Mar. 2023
But usage of PrEP, which stands for pre-exposure prophylaxis, has remained low.
—Dallas News, 15 Feb. 2023
The drug was developed by AstraZeneca as pre-exposure prophylaxis for COVID.
—Carla Delgado, Verywell Health, 8 Feb. 2023
The guidelines also restrict donations from people taking medications to prevent HIV infection such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP).
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Jan. 2023
See all Example Sentences for pre-exposure prophylaxis 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Benjamin Ryan, NBC News, 18 Mar. 2023
But usage of PrEP, which stands for pre-exposure prophylaxis, has remained low.
—Dallas News, 15 Feb. 2023
The drug was developed by AstraZeneca as pre-exposure prophylaxis for COVID.
—Carla Delgado, Verywell Health, 8 Feb. 2023
The guidelines also restrict donations from people taking medications to prevent HIV infection such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP).
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Jan. 2023
See all Example Sentences for pre-exposure prophylaxis
Dictionary Entries Near pre-exposure prophylaxis
Cite this Entry
“Pre-exposure prophylaxis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pre-exposure%20prophylaxis. Accessed 29 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
pre-exposure prophylaxis
noun
variants
also preexposure prophylaxis
plural pre-exposure prophylaxes also preexposure prophylaxes
: a preventative treatment for infections or diseases (such as HIV or rabies) that involves administering one or more drugs to an uninfected person who is at a high risk of exposure to a particular pathogen
Although preventing rabies in dogs is the most cost-effective way of preventing human rabies deaths, pre-exposure prophylaxis is valuable for people at a high disease risk, particularly in areas where controlling disease in the animal reservoir is difficult or has not been implemented and in areas where access to postexposure prophylaxis and rabies immunoglobulin is unreliable or nonexistent.—Jocelyn A. Kessels et al., Bulletin of the World Health Organization
—abbreviation PrEP
compare post-exposure prophylaxis
Jocelyn A. Kessels et al., Bulletin of the World Health OrganizationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share