What is the affect HIV is having on people today?

Hannah King-Guffey

HIV has reached every country around the globe. HIV is a human immunodeficiency virus which

causes AIDS. HIV is most often transmitted through sexual contact, though there has been an

increase of transmitting the infection through blood (typically through drug use), or an infected

mother passing it on to her child through pregnancy, childbirth, or breast milk due to her blood

and vaginal fluid.

HIV/AIDS is the deadliest contagious disease today by a death toll of 76.1 million people since

the start of the epidemic. 36.7 million people live with HIV/AIDS world-wide today, with more

than 1.1 million people in the U.S. infected. (HIV.gov)

Eastern europe and

central Asia, 1,600,000 Western and Central
Middle East and North Europe and North Places world-wide infection rates
Africa, 230,000 America, 2,100,000

The Caribbean, 310,000

Latin America,
1,800,000

Western and Central

Africa, 6,100,000 Eastern and Southern
Africa, 19,400,000

Asia and Pacific,

5,100,000
A big issue with those

infected with HIV/AIDS is they

are unaware they are

infected due to the obstacle

of being tested. And in 2016,

only 53% of all people living

with HIV had access to

treatment. (UNAIDS)

HIV/AIDS is only treatable and is not curable infection.

Since antiretroviral therapy became a successful treatment life expectancy for someone

infected with HIV has dramatically increased from 7.7 million people in 2010 to 20.9 in 2017.
Women over 15 years of age account for 17.8 million of those infected with HIV today.

One in four people

living with HIV in

the United States is

a woman.

According to a 2013

study, only half of

female high school

students used a

condom the last time they had sex, and only one in eight students have ever been tested for

HIV. Because of the lack of protection being used with younger women and because their

reproductive tract is still developing they are much more at risk for contracting HIV. (Womens

health)
In 2016, 120,000 children died

from AIDS related illnesses,

having HIV/AIDS being among

the leading causes of infant

mortality. An estimated 438

children a day become infected

with HIV. Because of the lack of

knowledge or resources children are contracting HIV when it could have been prevented

through the medicine we have available today.

NEW HIV INFECTIONS IN CHILDREN AGE 0-14 YEARS OLD.

500

450

400
NUMBER INNFECTED IN THOUSANDS

350

300

250

200

150

100

50

0
1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2002 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016
 Globally, men who have sex with men

are 24 times more at risk of HIV

compared to the general population. In

2014 homosexual men accounted for

54% of new HIV infections in Western

Europe, and 68% in North America. A

major reason for high vulnerability to

HIV among homosexual men is that unprotected anal sex carries a higher risk of transmission

than vaginal sex. In Jamaica, one in three men who have sex with men are living with HIV.

(Avert)

People who inject drugs are

among the most vulnerable

group of people to contract

the HIV infection. 14% of all

people who inject drugs are

living with HIV.

Geographically, Eastern Europe and Central Asia account for the majority of new HIV infections

among people who inject drugs. Because injecting drugs is illegal this causes people to rush,

disregard health hazards, and share needles causing the virus to spread globally much faster.

(Avert)
The spread of HIV/AIDS is declining and the death rates are decreasing more and more as

technology, resources, medicine, and testing have become more available today. There are

many methods to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and people at risk are being given much

better access to this knowledge. It is a world-wide, life taking, and highly contagious infection

but progress to treat and contain the infection has increased greatly and good results are being

shown.

Works Cited
Avert. (MSM) HIV and AIDS. 6 December 2017. 7 March 2018.
<https://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-social-issues/key-affected-populations/men-
sex-men>.
—. People who inject drugs. 27 July 2017. 8 March 2018.
<https://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-social-issues/key-affected-
populations/people-inject-drugs>.
HIV.gov. The Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic . 20 November 2017. 5 March 2018.
<https://www.hiv.gov/hiv-basics/overview/data-and-trends/global-statistics>.
UNAIDS. Fact Sheet-Latest statistics onn the status of the AIDS epidemic . 2018. 5 March 2018.
<http://www.unaids.org/en/resources/fact-sheet>.
Womens health. Women and HIV. 1 February 2018. 8 March 2018.
<https://www.womenshealth.gov/hiv-and-aids/women-and-hiv>.
All Photos: Hannah King-Guffey