News / International
20% of HIV positive Americans not seeking treatment
30 Nov 2011 at 05:46hrs | Views
Americans are not seeking treatment for HIV - but that's because around 20 per cent of those infected are not even aware they have the virus, as people can have an infection for years without developing symptoms.
Of the nearly 1.2million people with HIV, about 20 per cent don't know they're infected, a new federal report revealed.
There's also a worrisome gap between those who are diagnosed and those who get in - and stay in - treatment, some experts said.
They added that not nearly enough people get tested for the infection.
The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention found only a small fraction of people are being successfully treated.
What's more, only about one in four Americans with the AIDS virus have the infection under control with medications, federal health officials said.
The good news is that once HIV-infected people get plugged into medical care, the drugs bring the virus under control nearly 80 per cent of the time, health officials said.
Only about 40 per cent of the 1.2million with HIV are getting HIV-fighting medications regularly. Worse, only 28 per cent have gotten the virus to low levels in their blood.
That translates to roughly 850,000 Americans who don't have the virus controlled, Dr Frieden, the director of the CDC, said.
The HIV virus can cause AIDS, an illness that destroys the body's immune system and causes about 16,000 deaths annually.
An infection was once a death sentence, but medications that have been available for 15 years can turn it into a manageable condition.
In the United States, the number of new infections each year has held steady in recent years, at about 50,000.
The CDC analysis was based on several sets of data, including surveys and surveillance reports from 2010 and a study that looked specifically at the medical care of people with HIV.
Some dropped routine care because of money or other obstacles. Some didn't stick with it for other, more personal reasons.
And, in a small percentage of cases, the medicine may not have worked.
Of the nearly 1.2million people with HIV, about 20 per cent don't know they're infected, a new federal report revealed.
There's also a worrisome gap between those who are diagnosed and those who get in - and stay in - treatment, some experts said.
They added that not nearly enough people get tested for the infection.
The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention found only a small fraction of people are being successfully treated.
What's more, only about one in four Americans with the AIDS virus have the infection under control with medications, federal health officials said.
The good news is that once HIV-infected people get plugged into medical care, the drugs bring the virus under control nearly 80 per cent of the time, health officials said.
Only about 40 per cent of the 1.2million with HIV are getting HIV-fighting medications regularly. Worse, only 28 per cent have gotten the virus to low levels in their blood.
That translates to roughly 850,000 Americans who don't have the virus controlled, Dr Frieden, the director of the CDC, said.
The HIV virus can cause AIDS, an illness that destroys the body's immune system and causes about 16,000 deaths annually.
An infection was once a death sentence, but medications that have been available for 15 years can turn it into a manageable condition.
In the United States, the number of new infections each year has held steady in recent years, at about 50,000.
The CDC analysis was based on several sets of data, including surveys and surveillance reports from 2010 and a study that looked specifically at the medical care of people with HIV.
Some dropped routine care because of money or other obstacles. Some didn't stick with it for other, more personal reasons.
And, in a small percentage of cases, the medicine may not have worked.
Source - Daily News
