HIV and AIDS in a nutshell

Not only is the number of HIV cases in the country increasing, the profile of the patients is also becoming younger, with majority infected through sexual contact.

She went on to explain that the study looked at trends around the region reported by United Nations officers and local community works who said their HIV strategy urgently needed to adapt to the vastly enlarged use of mobile dating apps.

Around 40% of new infections among adolescents occurred outside sub-Saharan Africa. After years of steady progress but uncertain direction, we finally have the leadership necessary to end the epidemic in New York State.

‘Adolescence is a time of transition and risk-taking, as children navigate the hard journey to adulthood, ‘ said UNICEF Regional Director for UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Daniel Toole. He is also calling on the federal government to increase its contribution nationwide for housing assistance for people living with HIV and AIDS. It will not be possible to end the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030 without tackling the epidemic among adolescents.

However, in many Asia-Pacific countries adolescents under 18 years are deemed to be too young to give their consent, and national laws and policies supposed to protect their best interests effectively do the opposite – barring them from testing and other services without parental or spousal consent.

Comprehensive sexuality education in schools and information on where to get an HIV test, and condom use, are among the other recommendations set out in the report. The estimated number of new HIV infections among adolescents in the country was 15,000 previous year, an increase from 12,000 in 2004.

For example, Red Cross volunteers could be equipped to carry out HIV testing in people’s homes. In Australia, where the early and consistent adoption of harm reduction initiatives such as needle syringe programs was supported by their government, fewer than two per cent of people who inject drugs are HIV-positive. The trial was a game changer for NSW which was already experiencing a steady decline in new HIV diagnoses, said the state’s Health Minister Jillian Skinner. We must ensure that no barrier stands in their way’.

In addition to the legal barriers, stigma and discrimination often discourage adolescents living with HIV from seeking treatment. “The youth are going to be part of the solution and certainly need to have a stronger voice”, said Bland. By 2020, UNAIDS aims for 90% of people with HIV to know their status, 90% of people who know their status to be in treatment and 90% of people in treatment to have undetectable viral loads. However, HIV prevalence remains high (19,1%) among the general population, although it varies markedly between regions.