Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2008. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Miami Herald - December 1, 2008
Dr. Sam Ho*
Most frustrating of all, the problem is generally preventable through changes in behavior, safer-sex practices, testing, basic healthcare and other forms of prevention.
Statistically, youth are catching up quickly to other high-risk groups. In 2006, citing the most recent statistics available, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) determined that young people accounted for half of all new infections in the United States.
Worldwide, women account for almost half of all new HIV infections. And almost two-thirds of those are among young people, with infections among youth rising in almost every region.
In the United States alone, more than one million Americans have HIV or AIDS. According to the CDC, the United States has the highest rate of teenage infection in the developed world. Every hour, two Americans who are between the ages of 13 and 24 contract HIV.
The face of AIDS is changing to include every race, gender and class in almost every country around the world. Staggering statistics and barriers still must be addressed. This year alone, the CDC admitted underestimating HIV cases by 40 percent, meaning that there could be more than 9,000 American teens who have contracted the disease and don't even know it. Without treatment or education, these teens will continue to transmit the virus to their partners.
Regularly testing pregnant women and at-risk youth for HIV and providing antiretroviral drugs if they are infected dramatically reduces the number of AIDS cases. This approach already is reducing the number of children being infected from birth. In 1992, 855 children in the United States developed AIDS. By 2005, only 57 children developed AIDS, a decline of 93 percent.
Preventing HIV is not complicated: Get tested as soon as you're sexually active. Don't use intravenous drugs or share needles. Abstain or practice safer sex. With preventive care, you and your healthcare provider can fight and manage this disease and protect children.
Most of all, get educated, and don't be shy about discussing these issues. It's better to talk about sensitive subjects with a doctor, nurse, friend or loved one than to let silence and complacency lead to infection.
Visit worldAIDSday.org to learn more.
*SAM HO, MD, executive vice president and chief medical officer, UnitedHealthcare, Cypress, Calif.
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