HIV-Affected community | |
---|---|
Specialty | HIV/AIDS |
Risk factors | Mainly unprotected sex |
Diagnostic method | Community-based Diagnosis methods |
The affected community (also known as the HIV-affected community) is composed of people who are living with HIV and AIDS, plus individuals whose lives are directly influenced by HIV infection. [1] [2] This originally was defined as young to middle aged adults who associate with being gay or bisexual men, and or injection drug users. HIV-affected community is a community that is affected directly or indirectly affected by HIV. These communities are usually influenced by HIV and undertake risky behaviours that lead to a higher chance of HIV infection. [3] To date HIV infection is still one of the leading cause of deaths around the world with an estimate of 36.8 million people diagnosed with HIV by the end of 2017, [4] but there can particular communities that are more vulnerable to HIV infection, these communities include certain races, gender, minorities, and disadvantaged communities. [5] One of the most common communities at risk is the gay community as it is commonly transmitted through unsafe sex. [6] The main factor that contributes to HIV infection within the gay/bisexual community is that gay men do not use protection when performing anal sex or other sexual activities which can lead to a higher risk of HIV infections. [7] Another community will be people diagnosed with mental health issues, such as depression is one of the most common related mental illnesses associated with HIV infection. [8] HIV testing is an essential role in reducing HIV infection within communities as it can lead to prevention and treatment of HIV infections but also helps with early diagnosis of HIV. [9] Educating young people in a community with the knowledge of HIV prevention will be able to help decrease the prevalence within the community. As education is an important source for development in many areas. Research has shown that people more at risk for HIV are part of disenfranchised and inner city populations as drug use and sexually transmitted diseases(STDs) are more prevalent. [3] [10] People with mental illnesses that inhibit making decisions or overlook sexual tendencies are especially at risk for contracting HIV. [3]
All members of a community are exposed or vulnerable to HIV infections, as in which HIV-affected community includes people that are affected by HIV or even influenced by it. [11] Communities that are affected by HIV are usually doing risky behaviours, these behaviours include; sexual activities without the use of protection, and sharing of syringes and needles can contribute to HIV infection. [3] These risk factors and behaviours includes; communities high in other sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea, herpes, etc. and communities that are active users of sharing needles that includes drug solutions(WHO. HIV) [12] Other factors that associate with communities such as limited healthcare access, poverty and power imbalances. [13] all contribute towards communities that are affected by HIV.
These communities include large metropolitan communities that include certain ethnic/racial, gender, and behavioural of subpopulations that may be affected by high rates of HIV counts. [5] Other communities in the rural areas could be more exposed to HIV infections as there is lack of communication between the outside world, such as less health care services, lack of food supplies and also education, that could be factors of increasing HIV infections. [14] Communities in rural areas also suffer from obtaining an adequate and affordable house and it could be difficult for HIV infected people to rent a house if the landlord discovers they are infected with HIV. [14] It is better to consider communities that include people who are more active in risky behaviours and are from particular racial groups that will be more likely to be affected by HIV. It will help to increase the chances of decreasing the prevalence of HIV overall and also helps to decrease the prevalence of HIV within that community. Communities are also socially impacted, family members that are affected by HIV reduces the capacity of that family to generate income and support for their family members. [15] It also has a reduction in individual's self care even though if they do not have HIV, but through taking their time to provide care and support to other people that are affected by HIV. [15] The suffering of HIV within communities does not affect some people within the community but the majority of the community. These affected HIV communities also work with their government in developing new approaches towards prevention of HIV, it helps to understand the effectiveness of community approaches and potentially assisting in the global crisis of HIV. [16]
Many communities are affected by HIV infection, whether they're infected or Influenced by HIV. In regards to the United States statistics of HIV infection among gay and bisexual men, there were 38,729 new cases recorded in 2017 but 70% of those cases were among adults and adolescents that are bisexual and gay men. [17] There are a range of different communities that may be more vulnerable towards HIV infections, these communities include; young women in Africa and Indigenous communities in different countries. [12] These communities come from different countries, which may vary the amount of infection in proportion to the population of the country but other factors may include such as disadvantages that may impact the community.[ citation needed ]
As it is more common for gay and bisexual men to interact in sexual activities like anal sex, without the use of protection, it can not only lead to HIV infection but also the transmission of other sexually transmitted diseases. [6] This is a term called “barebacking” also known as intentional unsafe sex, as barebacking can be an unintentional health threat to the gay community. [6] The high percentage of HIV infection within the gay/bisexual community is impacted by different factors. [7] In most bisexual and gay communities anal sex is one of the most common factors that contribute to increasing of HIV infections, with men not using condoms or taking medicines that will help treat HIV. [7] There are many other methods that increases HIV infection but anal sex is one of the main infection factors for HIV.[ citation needed ]
By understanding how gender affects HIV infection it is important and essential in reducing the risk of HIV, there are particular groups such as men, pregnant women, children, transgender people, and women who may have been affected by HIV infections. [17] In 2016, 23% of HIV infection in the United States were women, similarly to men, black/African American women are more likely to be diagnosed with HIV and the most common way of transmission is through sex with a male partner. [18] It is perceived that women need to be able to make a change in their sexual lives and insist that their partners use protection when doing sexual activities as women are bearing the burn of the HIV infection situations. [19]
Another community that is affected by HIV are people who are diagnosed with mental illnesses and also people who are under the influence of drugs. [8] It is believed that most HIV patients have experienced or are experiencing some sort of mental illness in their lives. [8] The most common mental health disorders are depression and depressive symptoms, as the chance of developing a mental illness is high for HIV infected communities [8] is two times higher in HIV-infected patients than in HIV-negative patients. [20] It is due to the lack of prevention and diagnosis tools to support communities with mental illness, increases the rate of HIV infection within the communities. [8]
Communities affected by HIV can include young people, young people age 10 to 24 years are increasingly being more affected by HIV in 2016 than any other age group community. [21] There has been an increasing number of young people from 2000 to 2015 with its tripling between those periods. In 2020 the majority of people in a community are from the low and middle-income countries, which means Sub-Saharan Africa communities have a higher chance of HIV infection. [21]
Generally, HIV diagnosis provides rapid tests, that will deliver the results on the same day [12] but there are some countries that are in the disadvantaged economic developments range which makes it harder to achieve reliable HIV diagnosises. [22] Without a reliable diagnosis for HIV it won't be able to support the community rather it will be costs the economony with useless materials to diagnose HIV infections.[ citation needed ]
With the increase of new technologies and developments, people who are newly diagnosed with HIV will be able to expect a normal life span with the use of antiretroviral therapy. [23] With the advancement of technology it has been much easier to design a multi-diagnosistic approach towards HIV infections which helps determine the prevalence and rates of HIV infection within a community. [24] The role of states and local health departments, community-based organizations, and health care services in improving the outcome of HIV infection, this includes diagnosing HIV and reducing the rates of undiagnosed HIV infections within communities affected by HIV. [9] Especially in HIV-affected communities, the lack of diagnosis for HIV creates complications for the public health as it will substantively increase new HIV infections, through unaware HIV positive people. [23] In some countries community-based HIV testing services have been implemented, this is an important approach for HIV diagnosis as it is the first time tester and for people in the need for the test. [25] These services are offered in many different areas, this includes community-based organizations, workplaces, school, and other institutions, the service is also mobile as it is designed to be provided through a mobile van, tents and other places. [25] These services have been supported by the World Health Organization and it is widely practiced as it is targeted at particular communities to lower HIV infections. [25] Even with the diagnosis of HIV within communities, connections of other existing diseases such as hypertension, malaria, diabetes, etc., remains a problem for community-based diagnosis services. [24]
Originally, contracting the HIV infection meant the result was almost certainly fatal. To date, there is currently no cure for HIV, but it is more emphasised on the prevention and treatment of HIV, these approaches are related to behavioural and educational interactions. [26] Community-based preventions are not fully developed due to the complexity of community components that prevent an accurate method of prevention for HIV infection within communities. [26] Similarly to the roles of community-based organisations, health departments, and health care services’ goal is to improve the diagnosis of HIV infection but also to prevent new HIV infections. [9] Improvement still needs to be made across the HIV care continuum, to able to support communities/people in need for treatments and also increase prevention care goals on a national level. [9] In the area of public health, there is a discussion between prevention and treatment, as both are limited resources, therefore, it is either treatment or prevention to be prioritized. [27]
Within this HIV pandemic, introducing HIV strategies helps to prevent HIV infections, such as the DOT – HAART(directly observed therapy with highly active antiretroviral therapy) as it was able to decrease HIV/AIDs mortality significantly in Europe and North America. [28] One of the main objectives of HAART is to be implemented towards poor communities however the high cost of medication and the lack of facilities needed to able to deliver such an approach has been limited. [28] To consider community-based approaches for HIV infection to be effective, the approaches will need to decrease risky behaviours, increase condom use and increase HIV-related knowledge towards among young people living within the community. [26] These preventions will not completely eradicate HIV infection within the community, but it will rather be able to decrease and slow down the rates of HIV infection. An important issue for community-based treatments is that within poorer communities with fewer resources have lower access to treatment of HIV infection than richer communities. [29] Nonetheless, the HIV-affected community steadily grows due to not only unsafe sex, but also due to the lack of information on the disease. This has led to a growth in increased HIV prevention efforts being implemented everywhere, especially the susceptible areas of the world. [3] [5] There have also been HIV preventive groups implemented for communities where anyone who has been affected by HIV can help make efforts towards ending it. [30]
The AIDS epidemic, caused by HIV, found its way to the United States between the 1970s and 1980s, but was first noticed after doctors discovered clusters of Kaposi's sarcoma and pneumocystis pneumonia in homosexual men in Los Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco in 1981. Treatment of HIV/AIDS is primarily via the use of multiple antiretroviral drugs, and education programs to help people avoid infection.
HIV/AIDS originated in the early 20th century and has become a major public health concern and cause of death in many countries. AIDS rates varies significantly between countries, with the majority of cases concentrated in Southern Africa. Although the continent is home to about 15.2 percent of the world's population, more than two-thirds of the total population infected worldwide – approximately 35 million people – were Africans, of whom around 1 million have already died. Eastern and Southern Africa alone accounted for an estimate of 60 percent of all people living with HIV and 100 percent of all AIDS deaths in 2011. The countries of Eastern and Southern Africa are most affected, leading to raised death rates and lowered life expectancy among adults between the ages of 20 and 49 by about twenty years. Furthermore, life expectancy in many parts of Africa is declining, largely as a result of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, with life-expectancy in some countries reaching as low as thirty-nine years.
Men who have sex with men (MSM) refers to all men who engage in sexual activity with other men, regardless of their sexual orientation or sexual identity. The term was created by epidemiologists in the 1990s, to better study and communicate the spread of sexually transmitted infections such as HIV/AIDS between all sexually active males, not strictly those identifying as gay, bisexual, pansexual or various other sexualities, but also for example male prostitutes. The term is often used in medical literature and social research to describe such men as a group. It does not describe any specific kind of sexual activity, and which activities are covered by the term depends on context. An alternative term, males who have sex with males is sometimes considered more accurate in cases where those described may not be legal adults.
The global pandemic of HIV/AIDS began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), by 2023, HIV/AIDS had killed approximately 40.4 million people, and approximately 39 million people were infected with HIV globally. Of these, 29.8 million people (75%) are receiving antiretroviral treatment. There were about 630,000 deaths from HIV/AIDS in 2022. The 2015 Global Burden of Disease Study estimated that the global incidence of HIV infection peaked in 1997 at 3.3 million per year. Global incidence fell rapidly from 1997 to 2005, to about 2.6 million per year. Incidence of HIV has continued to fall, decreasing by 23% from 2010 to 2020, with progress dominated by decreases in Eastern Africa and Southern Africa. As of 2020, there are approximately 1.5 million new infections of HIV per year globally.
Syndemics is the evaluation of how social and health conditions arise, in what ways they interact, and what upstream drivers may produce their interactions. The word is a blend of "synergy" and "epidemics". The idea of syndemics is that no disease exists in isolation and that often population health can be understood through a confluence of factors that produces multiple health conditions that afflict some populations and not others. Syndemics are not like pandemics ; instead, syndemics reflect population-level trends within certain states, regions, cities, or towns.
HIV/AIDS in India is an epidemic. The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) estimated that 3.14 million people lived with HIV/AIDS in India in 2023. Despite being home to the world's third-largest population of persons with HIV/AIDS, the AIDS prevalence rate in India is lower than that of many other countries. In 2016, India's AIDS prevalence rate stood at approximately 0.30%—the 80th highest in the world. Treatment of HIV/AIDS is via a combination of antiretroviral drugs and education programs to help people avoid infection.
Serosorting, also known as serodiscrimination, is the practice of using HIV status as a decision-making point in choosing sexual behavior. The term is used to describe the behavior of a person who chooses a sexual partner assumed to be of the same HIV serostatus to engage in unprotected sex with them for a reduced risk of acquiring or transmitting HIV/AIDS.
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. It can be managed with treatment. Without treatment it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
Pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention, commonly known as PrEP, is a form of medication used to prevent HIV infection, the cause of HIV/AIDS.
AIDS service organizations are community-based organizations that provide support for people affected by HIV/AIDS. This article focuses on HIV/AIDS service organizations in the United States only. However, it is important to note that similar organizations in other countries, such as Canada, also played significant roles during the HIV/AIDS crisis and share many common experiences and challenges.
The Caribbean is the second-most affected region in the world in terms of HIV prevalence rates. Based on 2009 data, about 1.0 percent of the adult population is living with the disease, which is higher than any other region except Sub-Saharan Africa. Several factors influence this epidemic, including poverty, gender, sex tourism, and stigma. HIV incidence in the Caribbean declined 49% between 2001 and 2012. Different countries have employed a variety of responses to the disease, with a range of challenges and successes.
HIV/AIDS was first diagnosed in 1981. As of year-end 2018, 160,493 people have been diagnosed with HIV in the United Kingdom and an estimated 7,500 people are living undiagnosed with HIV. New diagnoses are highest in gay/bisexual men, with an estimated 51% of new diagnosis reporting male same-sex sexual activity as the probable route of infection. Between 2009 and 2018 there was a 32% reduction in new HIV diagnosis, attributed by Public Health England (PHE) to better surveillance and education. PHE has described an "outbreak" in Glasgow amongst people who inject drugs, and has campaigns targeting men who have sex with men in London and other major cities. London was the first city in the world to reach the World Health Organization target for HIV, set at 90% of those with HIV diagnosed, 90% of those diagnosed on HAART and 90% of those on HAART undetectable. The UK as a whole later achieved the same target. Under the Equality Act 2010, it is illegal to discriminate against someone based on their HIV status in the UK.
The history of HIV/AIDS in Australia is distinctive, as Australian government bodies recognised and responded to the AIDS pandemic relatively swiftly, with the implementation of effective disease prevention and public health programs, such as needle and syringe programs (NSPs). As a result, despite significant numbers of at-risk group members contracting the virus in the early period following its discovery, Australia achieved and has maintained a low rate of HIV infection in comparison to the rest of the world.
HIV and AIDS is a major public health issue in Zimbabwe. The country is reported to hold one of the largest recorded numbers of cases in Sub-Saharan Africa. According to reports, the virus has been present in the country since roughly 40 years ago. However, evidence suggests that the spread of the virus may have occurred earlier. In recent years, the government has agreed to take action and implement treatment target strategies in order to address the prevalence of cases in the epidemic. Notable progress has been made as increasingly more individuals are being made aware of their HIV/AIDS status, receiving treatment, and reporting high rates of viral suppression. As a result of this, country progress reports show that the epidemic is on the decline and is beginning to reach a plateau. International organizations and the national government have connected this impact to the result of increased condom usage in the population, a reduced number of sexual partners, as well as an increased knowledge and support system through successful implementation of treatment strategies by the government. Vulnerable populations disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe include women and children, sex workers, and the LGBTQ+ population.
Honduras is the Central American country most adversely affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. It is estimated that the prevalence of HIV among Honduran adults is 1.5%.
HIV/AIDS was first detected in Canada in 1982. In 2018, there were approximately 62,050 people living with HIV/AIDS in Canada. It was estimated that 8,300 people were living with undiagnosed HIV in 2018. Mortality has decreased due to medical advances against HIV/AIDS, especially highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART).
Various issues in medicine relate to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. According to the US Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA), besides HIV/AIDS, issues related to LGBT health include breast and cervical cancer, hepatitis, mental health, substance use disorders, alcohol use, tobacco use, depression, access to care for transgender persons, issues surrounding marriage and family recognition, conversion therapy, refusal clause legislation, and laws that are intended to "immunize health care professionals from liability for discriminating against persons of whom they disapprove."
Discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS or serophobia is the prejudice, fear, rejection, and stigmatization of people with HIV/AIDS. Marginalized, at-risk groups such as members of the LGBTQ+ community, intravenous drug users, and sex workers are most vulnerable to facing HIV/AIDS discrimination. The consequences of societal stigma against PLHIV are quite severe, as HIV/AIDS discrimination actively hinders access to HIV/AIDS screening and care around the world. Moreover, these negative stigmas become used against members of the LGBTQ+ community in the form of stereotypes held by physicians.
Since reports of emergence and spread of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the United States between the 1970s and 1980s, the HIV/AIDS epidemic has frequently been linked to gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) by epidemiologists and medical professionals. It was first noticed after doctors discovered clusters of Kaposi's sarcoma and pneumocystis pneumonia in homosexual men in Los Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco in 1981. The first official report on the virus was published by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) on June 5, 1981, and detailed the cases of five young gay men who were hospitalized with serious infections. A month later, The New York Times reported that 41 homosexuals had been diagnosed with Kaposi's sarcoma, and eight had died less than 24 months after the diagnosis was made.
Infectious diseases within American correctional settings are a concern within the public health sector. The corrections population is susceptible to infectious diseases through exposure to blood and other bodily fluids, drug injection, poor health care, prison overcrowding, demographics, security issues, lack of community support for rehabilitation programs, and high-risk behaviors. The spread of infectious diseases, such as HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, hepatitis C (HCV), hepatitis B (HBV), and tuberculosis, result largely from needle-sharing, drug use, and consensual and non-consensual sex among prisoners. HIV and hepatitis C need specific attention because of the specific public health concerns and issues they raise.
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