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Comprehensive & Cost Effective Laboratory Monitoring of HIV/AIDS: an African Role Model
Published on: October 31, 2010
HIV/AIDS among African Americans: progress or progression?
D K Smith1, M Gwinn, R M Selik
1Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Surveillance and Epidemiology, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.
AIDS (London, England)
|July 14, 2000
Summary
African Americans face a severe HIV/AIDS epidemic disproportionately affecting them. Urgent interventions are needed to address risk behaviors and macroenvironmental factors to reduce transmission and improve outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Public Health
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- African Americans experience a disproportionately severe HIV/AIDS epidemic.
- Existing interventions have not significantly reduced HIV transmission rates in this population compared to whites.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review data on HIV infection, AIDS, mortality, and risk behaviors in African Americans.
- To identify strategies for reducing HIV exposure and infection in this community.
Main Methods:
- Review of epidemiologic data.
- Analysis of published, multisite studies on HIV infection and related behaviors.
Main Results:
- African Americans exhibit the most severe HIV epidemic across all common epidemiologic measures.
- HIV epidemic continues to grow despite available interventions.
- Few intervention studies adequately evaluated or focused on high-risk groups like men who have sex with men.
Conclusions:
- HIV transmission and disease rates remain high and disproportionately affect African Americans.
- Further research is needed on risk behaviors, social networks, and community-specific factors.
- Macroenvironmental factors like poverty, social class, and racism require investigation for effective intervention development.
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