The HIV/AIDS pandemic is very important in a global context, it has had distinct effects on many regions in the world. HIV has reached every region in the world, some areas are more heavily affected than others. The epidemic has demanded substantial political and financial commitment from international organizations, donor countries, and domestic governments. In recent years, the international community had made drastic efforts to provide universal access to HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. HIV continues to be a major global public health issue, the disease as claimed the lives of 35 million individuals so far. An approximate 1.0 million individuals have died from HIV related illnesses in 2016. The disease is now considered extremely important public health problem, nowadays more and more individuals are becoming aware of their status and are receiving the proper treatment.
The HIV/AIDS epidemic is heavily influenced by both political and social factors. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, gay or bisexual men who have sex with men (MSM) are the most severely affected population in the world. Although, MSM only account for a small fraction of the total U.S. population they are more prone to HIV infections. MSM within ethnic minority groups are at an even greater risk of infection. Individuals who inject drugs are also more prone to infection. Injection drug users have been associated directly or indirectly with approximately one-third of AIDS cases in the
Since its identification approximately two decades ago, HIV has increasingly spread globally, surpassing expectations (1). The number of people living with HIV worldwide is estimated to be 36 million, with 20 million people having died from the disease, giving a total number of 56 million being infected (1). In 2000 alone, 5.3 million people were infected with HIV and there is potential for further spread. HIV infection rates vary all over the world with the highest rates in Sub-Saharan Africa (1). Responding to this epidemic has been a challenge as infection rates have increased worldwide despite tremendous public health efforts by nations (1). The identification of potential interventions to reduce the magnitude of the problem has
The AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, consisted entirely of deaths, illnesses and most of all fear, changing the way society viewed gay men. Being that it was only happening to homosexuals and everyone became super homophobic and believed that the disease was a cause of being gay until it started happening to women too. This affected the entire medical metaphysics in society on what is considered safe methods of having sex and health precautions as well. Before the 1980s hit HIV was thought to originate form Kinshasa which is in Congo. In the 1920 HIV crossed between chimpanzees to humans on the Democratic Republic of humans.(Avert 1). AIDS is caused by HIV and is the last stage of HIV and can lead to death. It attacks every single
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 immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS is a pandemic problem affecting global health. At the end of 2015, 36.7 million people were living with HIV/AIDS globally. The rate of incidence is more prevalent in Sub-Saharan Africa with almost 1 in every 24 adults living with HIV/AIDS. In the united states, HIV/AIDS is a diversified health problem affecting all sexes, ages and races and involving the transmission of multiple risk behavior. However, with the introduction of various prevention programs and antiretroviral drugs, the incidence of HIV/AIDS has reduced.
Angels in America ambitiously covers themes varying from politics and justice, love and abandonment, to homosexuality and religion. There are undoubtedly too many issues to thoroughly analyze each and every one, but disease and destruction stand out: specifically the representation of AIDS and its affects on the individual acceptance and defining of sexuality, as well as, society’s perspectives. Angels in America is an accurate, honest portrayal of the slow deterioration of the human body, the soul’s acceptance of mortality, and the reality of AIDS in a society that is not quite ready to be mentally open to tolerance. Kushner’s Angels in America is a realistic portrayal of the rise and conquer of the AIDS epidemic in the United States: the heft of social stigma aligns with the historical perspective of the unknown during the mid-1980s.
Patient Zero was first diagnosed with Kaposi's sarcoma, a form of skin cancer common to AIDS victims, in June 1980 (The Appalling Saga of Patient Zero). The first recognition of AIDS came in 1981 with an outbreak in homosexual men in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Patients were suffering a breakdown in the body's natural defenses that often leads to fatal forms of cancer and lethal bouts of infections. Patient Zero had traveled extensively around the world getting sexual partners in every country he went to. When he was diagnosed, he was warned that he would be putting partners at risk if continuing to have sexual activity, but he still continued in the same pattern, which spread the disease directly and indirectly until he died in 1984.
The beginning of the AIDS epidemic started in 1981 when the first case of an unknown disease was publically announced. Since its publication the human immunodeficiency virus and its autoimmune deficiency syndrome have sparked many concerns, medically, ethically, and socially. The following documentary and films expressed awareness to the public, they are:
“According to the New England Journal, by September 1987, more than 40,000 cases of AIDS had been recognized in the United States and 50,000 cases in different countries.”(Swenson par. 1) The events that took place in the late 1980s and early 1990s changed the world as we knew it. It also challenged some of the greatest medical minds of that time, as they continually searched for a cure worldwide. An examination of primary and secondary sources will reveal the significance of the key event in American history.
HIV is a universal and a pandemic disease has claimed 33 million lives globally in the 1980s. It is approximated that 35 million
In 2014, 1.2 million people died from HIV and its related causes. In the same year, about 36.9 million people were living with HIV. Among these, 2 million were newly infected in 2014. The rate of infection has reduced by 35% between the years of 2000 and 2015. Between the same years, mortality due to HIV fell by 24%. The area with the most HIV/AIDS victims is Sub-Saharan Africa. In this region, 25.8 million people were living with HIV in 2014. The region also has 70% of the newly infected victims in the world. It is very unfortunate that more than 50% of people with HIV know that they have it. HIV testing efforts have improved with 150 million in 129 low and middle income counties getting tested. It was reported in 2015 that 15.8 million people were receiving antiretroviral therapy (World Health Organization,
When the AIDS epidemic first exploded, the majority of the general public chose to ignore the disease due to the fact that it mainly struck the LGBT population. It was up to members of the LGBT community to spread awareness not only on how to prevent the illness, but about the very existence of AIDs itself. Unfortunately, access to such information was stalled due to the lack of available methods of communication, leaving LGBT people as unsuspecting victims even to this day. The development of the internet has led to the advancement in communication and information transference – improved traits that have played an important role in the growth and awareness of the present LGBT community. If the community had such methods of communication when
Since the outbreak of HIV/AIDS, an estimated 78 million people have acquired HIV and has killed approximately 39 million people infected with the virus. The prognosis of the epidemic has continued to vary from different countries and according to global statistics; 35 million people in 2013 were living with HIV/AIDS. 2.5 million People per annum acquire the virus and 1.5 million die of AIDS. Inspite of the drastic transmission of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the development and accessibility of anti-retroviral drugs has decreased mortality rates by 22% from a population of 2.0million in 2009 to 1.5million in 2013 (WHO, 2013),
Worldwide, HIV/AIDS poses an enormous challenge on the survival of mankind. HIV is the leading cause of mortality among women of reproductive age worldwide and is a major contributor to maternal, infant and child morbidity and mortality (1). 33.4 million People are estimated to be living with HIV worldwide; 15.7 million are women and 2 million are children younger than 15 years of age (1). With an adult prevalence of 5.2% in 2008, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has been the most severely HIV stricken region, accounting for 71% of all new infections in adults and children, and about 90% of new infections among children worldwide (2). In 2009 the prevalence of HIV in Ethiopia was estimated at 2.3% with differentials: urban (7.7%), rural (0.9%), male (1.8%), and female (2.8%)(3). The number of people living with HIV/AIDS was 1,116,216 of which 84,189 were pregnant women, 72,945 were children under 15years and annual HIV positive births were 14,140(3). In the absence of any intervention of mother to child transmission of HIV(i.e. exclusive breast feeding and use of antiretroviral drugs), the risk of a baby acquiring the virus from an infected mother ranges from 15% to 25% in industrialized countries, and 25% to 35% in developing countries. HIV transmission rate and time of transmission is estimated to be 5% to 10% during pregnancy, 10% to 15% during delivery, and 5% to 20% during breast feeding (4-5). In 2009, 53% of HIV-infected pregnant women worldwide received antiretroviral (ARV)
HIV, the virus which develops into AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), is one of the world’s largest health concerns. The first cases were discovered in 1981. Now, about 35 years later, there are over 36.9 million people living with the disease (UNAIDS 1). Cases have been reported in all regions of the world. The majority of those living with HIV/AIDS, and those at greatest risk for contracting the disease, have limited to no access to education, prevention, care and treatment. There also is still no cure for the disease. Despite challenges faced by those trying to develop techniques for prevention, global efforts have been developed to try to curtail the spread of the disease and prevent as many new cases as possible. The number of AIDS related deaths each year has declined, showing that efforts for prevention are making a difference. In addition, the number of people with HIV receiving treatment has increased tenfold from 1.4 million in 2014 to over 15 million in March of 2015 (UNAIDS 1). This increase in the numbers of those being treated reflects the success that public safety programs have had when it comes to spreading knowledge of the disease and providing assistance to those infected. Both of these, as well as numerous other interventions and vaccine research, are key factors when it comes to how the U.S. Government and other public safety divisions are approaching the war on AIDS over the last 30 plus years and moving forward. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is being
HIV, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, is a virus that attacks the body’s immune system, which leads to the inability to fight infections and disease. The final stage of HIV is AIDS, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, meaning the body has an extremely low count of white blood cells making the body an easy station for disease (What, p. 2). HIV and AIDS are prominent in most areas of Africa, but it is especially severe is Nigeria. As of 2013, there are 3.2 million people living with HIV in this country, which has also led to approximately 210,000 AIDS related deaths (HIV, p. 1). There are many aspects contributing to the reason that HIV/AIDS is so prominent in this area of Africa, but there are also several steps being taken to slow the spread and ultimately contain this virus.