ABCs of HIV for National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day

Today, April 10, 2016, is National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day. Why do we need a YOUTH awareness day? Because in 2014, nearly 10,000 young adults were newly diagnosed with HIV (age 13-24 years, 9731 cases). And that is only young people who got TESTED and therefore were DIAGNOSED. Nearly half of young people already living with HIV are UNAWARE that they are infected. In honor of this HIV Awareness Day, here are my quick HIV ABCs:

• A: ALL people ages 15-64 should be tested for HIV at least once, regardless of risk factors. Why?Widespread testing will help identify the estimated 1 in 8 people living with HIV infection who do not know their are infected, and now with our highly accurate rapid testing, false positives are extremely rare.
• B: BISEXUAL- meaning remember that HIV occurs in BOTH genders, as well as emphasizing the fact that HIV is most prevalent in gay, bisexual and other males who have sex with men (but not all MSM identify as gay or bisexual.) Nearly 20% of the 44,000 new HIV diagnoses in the US during 2014 were female, and the vast majority (87%) were infected through heterosexual sex. 
• C: CONDOMS- "Safe Sex" means using condoms consistently and correctly, for all forms of penetrative intimacy. To be specific, use condoms for oral, anal and vaginal sex. (While oral sex is low risk for HIV transmission, other STIs such as gonorrhea and herpes simplex are easily transmitted this way.) Condoms do not make you bullet-proof, but they work extremely well -up to 98% decrease in transmission of HIV.

BOTTOM LINE: HIV has not disappeared, and many who are infected do not know. GET TESTED!

We Should All Be #FacingAIDS

Today (and every December 1st) is World AIDS Day. Do you know anyone living with HIV disease? Or anyone who has died of AIDS? With over a million Americans living with HIV disease, odds are good that someone in your life either has or will be affected by this infection. The scary part is that only 5 out of 6 infected individuals are aware of their HIV status...which means ONE in SIX people infected with HIV are completely UNAWARE they carry and can spread the disease.


This silent presence of HIV is the very reason that back in 2006, the CDC changed screening recommendations to state that EVERYONE aged 13-64 should be tested once for HIV, regardless of perceived risk factors. People at high risk should be re-screened annually, which certainly includes sex workers  and injection drug users, but ALSO includes both gay AND heterosexual people "who themselves or whose sex partners have had more than one sex partner since their most recent HIV test." Let me say it again- even if you have had only one new partner since you were last tested, it's time to get tested again this year. 

HIV is not tucked away back in some dark corner of our society with drug addicts and prostitutes. Heterosexual transmission is the primary source (84%) of new infections in American women, causing nearly 7000 new cases in 2010. 1 in 4 new HIV infections occurs in young people (ages 13-24). If you are sexually active, it is imperative to know YOUR HIV status, and that of any potential new partners.

I love the  #FacingAIDS campaign, because putting familiar faces on unfamiliar diseases is a terrific way to promote awareness and remove stigma. By the way, the #FacingAIDS pictures do not at all imply these people have HIV disease- simply that they realize that the "face" of HIV can look like ANYONE, and this picture is to encourage everyone to get tested and be certain they know their HIV status. HIV doesn't care how much money you make, where you live or how you dress...it is an equal opportunity virus.

On this World AIDS Day, please make a commitment to know your HIV status.

BOTTOM LINE: Every American aged 13-64 should be tested for HIV disease- if you have not been checked, get tested!

WORLD AIDS DAY- Does It Affect YOU?

Today, December 1, 2012, is World AIDS Day. Hopefully you will see some red ribbons around that reflect more than Christmas cheer- they are symbols of AIDS awareness. Many Americans are unaware that HIV disease is still a concern, since it is no longer a common lead story on the nightly news. Ironically, our capitol, Washington D.C., has the highest prevalence of HIV disease within our country.  There are now over 1.1 million Americans living with HIV disease. The good news is that with the tremendous advances with antiviral therapy in the last decade, most people with HIV infection are able to continue to lead productive lives, although they must be extremely vigilant about their health maintenance. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that one in four new HIV infections occur in young people ages 13-24, with over 12,000 new infections in this age group each year.

Perhaps the most frightening issue with HIV disease today is that a significant portion of these infected individuals- up to an estimated 60% of infected youth- have no idea they are infected, and therefore can be unknowingly spreading this disease. The current recommendations are for EVERYONE aged 13-65 and living in the United States to be tested, regardless of perceived risk. With this universal directive, we will be able to identify all those with silent disease, and initiate early treatment that will improve and prolong their health.

BOTTOM LINE: Current guidelines encourage all Americans aged 13-65 to have at least one HIV test. Talk with your doctor today and GET TESTED. 

Myth #13- AIDS is disappearing

HIV disease is far from disappearing. We have over a million Americans living with HIV disease or AIDS. (AIDS is more advanced disease, and many people with HIV disease have little or no symptoms.) When the AIDS epidemic erupted, it was depicted as a disease of the gay male population in San Francisco. Sadly, many people still believe the myth that only that group is at risk for HIV disease.
So what are the facts? Which Americans have HIV? An estimated 47% are black, 34% are white, and 17% are Hispanic. Roughly one in four people with HIV disease are unaware of their infection. 74% are male, and 26% are female. 45% of people with HIV are indeed men who have sex with men (gay or bisexual or on the "down low"), 27% are heterosexuals who had "high risk" contact, and 22% are intravenous drug users. By age, the majority are 25-44 years old at diagnosis.
BOTTOM LINE: HIV has infected over a million Americans, and one fourth of them are unaware- get tested and make sure you know your status.