Human Immmunodeficiency Virus Research Paper

HIV has affected people all across the world. HIV comes with physical and mental symptoms. The body symptoms include skin flaking off, being dry, skin peeling off (Saliba 23) , fingernails falling off (32), and weight loss (14). Mentally it is hard to sleep, people become weak, and are tired all the time (23). People all across the world are infected with this disease, and the problem with this is the fact that most do not even know they have it. The most people who are infected each year are African Americans, gays, or bisexuals. 10,315 African Americans were infected in 2015. The U.S.A. has estimated about 1.1 million are infected with the disease. Equally to about 12,333 deaths happened in 2014 from AIDS related diseases, and 6,721 deaths from AIDS directly. Although there are a large amount of people getting infected, on the other hand eighteen percent of the population with HIV is declining since 2008-2014 (“U.S. Statistics”). In the world about 33.2 million people worldwide have HIV, with 22.5 million people in sub Saharan Africa are living with this condition, one out of nine people who live in South America have HIV or AIDS (Saliba 8).

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 50,000 people are infected with HIV each year. In 2010, the most recent year for which this information is available, there were around 47,500 new HIV infections in the United States (p. 1). The population of people with HIV is diverse due to the fact that it does not discriminate. Men and women of any age,

Moreover, the HIV epidemic in this region is almost double than compared to any other regions in the nation. The University of North Carolina has found a number of factors that demonstrate a relatively accurate assessment of increasing number of HIV cases in North Carolina and other parts of the southern region. Migrants can be a marginalized population with significant barriers to accessing preventive services. This process of migration may put Latinos at higher risk for HIV. Through the course of migration many Latinos and Hispanics experiences risky behaviors in multiple sexual partners and an increase in illicit drug use. According to Micah and William, Mexican migrants may be more likely to engage in riskier behaviors following the

​African-Americans are the ethnic group most affected by HIV/AIDS. Ironically african-americans represent 14% of the population of the United States , but represent 44% across the gender line. African-american men represent 70% of HIV infections among the ethnic group, however african-american women are also highly at risk of HIV infection. Indeed they have a rate of infection that is 15 times greater than the rate for caucasion women (HIV among African-Americans, 2012). Most African-american women (85%) are infected with HIV through heterosexual sex, often with partners, who claim to be

HIV/AIDS is a disease with social, psychological and physiological consequences for those impacted by the illness. The impact of HIV and AIDS among African American women has been devastating. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC, 2010) reports that black women represent 29% of the estimated new HIV infections among all adult and adolescent African Americans and HIV/AIDS is the third leading cause of death for black women ages 25?44. Several

HIV/AIDS Disparity among African Americans Health disparities are the differences in accessing and receiving quality of health care provided to different populations (book). The multiple causes of disparities may include gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, stigma or socioeconomic status. One of the common disparities in the US is among African American women who are infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and its viral successor, acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). There is no clear answer as to why disparity is an ongoing problem within the population but factors that contribute to this epidemic include race itself, poverty or low income and lack of access to care

Many people are unaware of their health status further increasing transmission of disease in young adult African American(AA) women age 18-24. Human Immunodeficiency Viruses (HIV) infects and also destroy blood cells (i.e. lymphocytes) that the body need to fight off infection (Mays 2011). African American women HIV positive, age 18-24 the magnitude of issue of the health disparity in this particular population will be addressed along with the many factors of social and health determinants. The health concern is towards the increase of transmission among young AA mothers and their children who are the health outcomes in many ways than one. The many social and health determinants that affect the women today are on going cycles that have yet to be broken. African American women make 64% of new infection cases for HIV. African american obtain a vulnerability unlike other minorities. The health population’s culture and stigma has played an important role in the community. The concern for AA women is the increase of new cases and most importantly the spread of the disease to these women’s children. The mortality rate of AA women with HIV is 47.1% as of 2012. (Siddiqi 2015)

Poverty, lower education, language barriers and access to health care are all factors that contribute to this population being at a high risk of contracting the disease and to be infected and not be aware of it. Hispanics are among the lower tested for HIV in the United States and this is because there is a misconception that when the go see their doctor, they are automatically tested for it. The language barrier affects their ability to speak clearly with their providers and to receive education about the disease and how to prevent it. Access to health care is another huge factor, because most Hispanics live in poverty they are not insured and therefore do not have access to decent health care, which could provide them with the education that they need. Those who are a little more educated and find a clinic they could go to do not go because of the stigma associated with it, in some areas HIV clinics have names such as “Clinical Immunology” and “AIDS team” these are not places that Hispanics want to be seen walking into for fear of being judged by their family and friends (Moran, 2007).

Experts agree that understanding these statistics can help to make the claim that the HIV virus is a heterogeneous one; significantly affecting certain populations more than others. This is especially true for African Americans (Sorvillo 930). However, mere statistical evidence is not enough to effectively declare this a health inequity. Further research into the virus amongst the population must be explored.

According to recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, approximately 1.2 million individuals in the United States have HIV (about 14 percent of which are unaware of their infection and another 1.1 million have progressed to AIDS. Over the past decade, the number of HIV cases in the US has increased, however, the annual number of cases remains stable at about 50, 000 new cases per year. Within these estimates, certain groups tend to carry the burden of these disease, particularly the gay, bisexual, and men who have sex with men (MSM) and among race/ethnic groups, Blacks/African American males remain disproportionately affected. (CDC)

Human Immunodefiency Virus has become all too common in my hometown Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Rapidly this city has taken the number one spot leading the nation cases per capita of 100,000 people, according to Rene Taylor, Executive Director of Family Services of Greater Baton Rouge. (Feb., 2018). Baton Rouge holds its highest HIV cases in the North Baton Rouge area, where African Americas account for 95% of the residents. Studies show that age, poverty and education level is concurrent with most people infected with the virus. Baton Rouge has many organizations and government funded programs for all residents but coherence is proven to be low. Therefore, I posed the question: How do we decrease the HIV percental in Baton Rouge? I suggest we decrease the HIV epidemic in Baton Rouge by first, providing mandatory Education and statistics about the virus. Secondly, promoting

African Americans have worst health outcomes of all major racial, ethnic and demographic groups in the U.S. According to Gaston & Alleyne-Green (2013), an estimated 233,624 African Americans died from AIDS-related illness in 2007, yet they are less likely to receive antiretroviral medications, are more likely to report poor adherence to medication regimens, and have a disproportionally higher HIV-related morbidity and mortality rate than their White and Hispanic

Poverty is not just about income, but it is about the health of people, their feelings, relationships and the environment, and society (Sutherland, 2013). According to the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) (2016), the highest poverty rate is among African Americans, which make up 27.4 percent. In addition, children under the age of 18, which is about 21 percent of about 15.3 million, live in poverty. The concern related to this population is the chances of adolescent getting HIV. According to McKay, Alicea, Elwyn, McClain, Parker, Small, and Mellins (2014), 50 percent of adolescents and young adults are infected with HIV each year. In addition, due to the fact that some adolescent

HIV infections in African American Males have been a national growing problem since the early 1990’s. According to CDC, in the United States, there are more than 1 million people living with HIV. 48 percent are afro American males between the ages 13-44(CDC, 2007). It is estimated that around 1 million people in the United States will be diagnose with HIV in the up coming year with the lifetime risk of becoming infected is 1 in 16 for black males (CDC,2007).

Since the 1980’s, the HIV epidemic continues to affect individuals all over the world; the HIV virus can affect any individual regardless of their socioeconomic status. HIV is a human immunodeficiency virus that is believed to have originated in Africa during the 1920’s, however, it did not spread to other continents until the 1980’s. According to the center for disease control and prevention, HIV is most prevalent in African-American communities. Unfortunately, it appears that the HIV virus is increasingly affecting African American women with a low SES status. One’s SES status is determined by one’s social and economic standing; SES is often measured by one’s level of education and income. One’s socioeconomic status may determine how an individual