National Institutes of Health, National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease - July 1998

African Americans and Hispanics are disproportionately affected by AIDS, as illustrated by the following facts:

• African Americans and Hispanics represented 56 percent of AIDS cases reported among men in 1996 and 78 percent of those in women. For every 100,000 African Americans, there were 89.7 cases of AIDS reported in 1996. This is more than six times higher than among Caucasians (13.5) and more than twice as high as the rate among Hispanics (41.3).

• For the first time, in 1996, the proportion of adults/adolescents reported with AIDS who are African American (41 percent) exceeded the proportion who are Caucasian (38 percent). Yet African Americans make up only 13 percent of the U.S. population.

• Injection drug use (IDU) is a major factor in the spread of HIV in minority communities. During the period July 1994-June 1995, the rate of IDU-associated AIDS cases among African-American women was 31.8 cases per 100,000. The rate among Caucasian women was 1.9 per 100,000. The rate among African-American men was 78.7 vs. 5.8 for Caucasian men, 44.7 for Hispanic men and 15 for Hispanic women.

• AIDS is the number one killer of African American men and women ages 25 to 44.

• Hispanics make up less than 10 percent of the U.S. population, yet they accounted for 19 percent of the AIDS cases reported in 1996.

• In 1996, 85 percent of the children reported with AIDS were African American and Hispanic.

• The rates of reported AIDS cases in 1996 among American Indians/Alaska Natives and Asians and Pacific Islanders were 10.7 and 5.9 per 100,000 population respectively.

NIAID Efforts

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), the lead component for AIDS research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is at the forefront of the war against this continuing health crisis facing minority populations.

NIAID’s AIDS research agenda includes conducting clinical trials that address the specific needs and concerns of minority groups, ensuring that minority patients have access to all clinical trials and communicating AIDS research findings to these communities. In addition, NIAID’s Office of Research on Minority and Women’s Health encourages research aimed at improving the health of minority populations. The Office also works to increase the effectiveness of outreach and education programs.

Through its Office of Communications, NIAID works with community-based organizations to disseminate information about AIDS and NIAID research activities to minority communities. AIDS information is available in Spanish and in low-literacy formats.

AIDS Clinical Trials

Four NIAID programs evaluate promising therapies to fight HIV infection, prevent and treat the opportunistic infections and cancers associated with AIDS, and reconstitute HIV-damaged immune systems.

The four programs are the Adult and Pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group (AACTG/PACTG), the Terry Beirn Community Programs for Clinical Research on AIDS (CPCRA), the Division of AIDS Treatment Research Initiative (DATRI) and the Division of Intramural Research clinical program. Together, they represent the largest AIDS therapy initiative in the United States. Recruiting minorities into clinical trials is a priority for NIAID to ensure that research results will apply to all populations affected by HIV. With the epidemic moving swiftly into minority communities, inclusion of these patients is particularly urgent.

ACTG sites receive additional funding from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to recruit injection drug users, who are also hard hit by the AIDS epidemic.

As of April 1997, 26 percent of the patients enrolled in ACTG trials were African American, 17 percent were Hispanic and 1 percent were other minorities.

CPCRA supports clinical research in community settings such as health centers and clinics. CPCRA studies examine how to use available therapies more effectively as well as the long-term consequences of different treatments.

Currently, CPCRA trials are under way in 15 cities at 16 units. Established in 1989, CPCRA had enrolled more than 13,000 participants in 27 protocols as of January 1997. Of these, 38 percent were African American, 42 percent were Hispanic and 2 percent were other minorities. Women made up 19 percent of the study population and injection drug users 31 percent.

NIAID is testing several candidate AIDS vaccines in six AIDS Vaccine Evaluation Units. Of the 2,284 participants, 8.9 percent were African American, 3.6 percent were Hispanic and 2 percent were other minorities.

Epidemiologic Research

NIAID studies explore the nature of HIV transmission and infection in a variety of population groups, including minority populations. Inner-city women, children and injection drug users are the focus of the Women and Infants Transmission Study (WITS/WITS II). Forty-five percent of those in WITS/WITS II are African American and 37 percent are Hispanic.

NIAID awarded funds to five sites in 1993 to establish the Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS), to investigate the impact of HIV on U.S. women. WIHS operates in tandem with the HIV Epidemiology Research Study (HERS), initiated in 1992 and sponsored by NIAID and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These studies are gathering information vital to the design of other research projects and clinical trials to evaluate better treatment strategies for women. Fifty-six percent of the participants are African American, 24 percent are Hispanic and 2 percent represent other minorities.

Information Sources

NIAID provides major support for the AIDS Clinical Trials Information Service (1-800-874-2572) to advise callers of the status of all FDA-approved HIV-related clinical trials being conducted throughout the United States. In addition, the HIV/AIDS Treatment Information Service (1-800-448-0440) provides treatment information on HIV/AIDS. Both services operate from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. Spanish-speaking specialists are available. For deaf access to both of these services, call 1-800-243-7012 (TDD). To obtain information specifically about clinical trials conducted by the NIAID Intramural AIDS Research Program, call 1-800-243-7644.

NIAID, a component of the National Institutes of Health, supports research on AIDS, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases as well as allergies and immunology.

Prepared by:

Office of Communications
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, MD 20892

Public Health Service
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
May 1997

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DOCN: NIAID98_FACT_SHEET_MINOR