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The Face Of The Hiv Epidemic Essay

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The face of the HIV epidemic has changed. People ages 50 and older now represent the fastest growing segment of HIV positive adults in the United States (Sankar et al, 2011). A workshop on HIV Infection and Aging estimated that by 2015, adults aged 50 and older will make up approximately 50% of all HIV/AIDS in the U.S. (Effros et al, 2008). Factors, including decreased efficiency of the immune system and decreased likelihood that older adults have been tested for HIV, increase the vulnerability of older adults to HIV transmission (Hillman & Broderick, 2002; Solomon, 1996).
Older adults with HIV diagnosed later in life deal with a different mix of social isolation than their younger peers. The added stigmas of aging and contracting HIV through sexual activity keeps many older adults from admitting to their status or talking about their behavior openly (Cahill & Valadez, 2013). As the aging population tends to be viewed as asexual, doctors rarely assess for HIV risk factors let alone screen for the infection (Oyieng’o & Bradley, 2010). Symptoms of the infection are also mistaken for other serious diseases commonly found in elderly persons (Oyieng’o & Bradley, 2010). HIV also increases the speed of aging on the body, weakening the immune system (Zhao et al, 2011). Infectious diseases have the potential to spread exponentially, and practitioners should remember that even if only one case of HIV is prevented, an intervention can translate into the prevention of many more cases

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