HIV/AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean
Publisher/Journal: The Lancet, Volume 372, Number 9635,
Publication date: 26 July 2008
Language: English
Number of pages: 1
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Available online
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Overview
“…..Mexico City is gearing up to host the XVII International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2008) on Aug 3–8. Around 20000 people are expected to attend this biennial meeting, which for the first time is being held in Latin America and the Caribbean. The conference should provide a unique opportunity to focus attention on a region that often gets sidelined in the global response to HIV/AIDS.
Nearly 2 million people are estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean—more than in the USA, Canada, western Europe, Australia, and Japan combined. Most transmission is through unprotected sex but of growing concern is the spread from unsafe injecting drug use. The average HIV prevalence rate in adults in Latin America is low (0·5%) compared with Africa (5%), yet the numbers of people affected are still considerable. Most infections are in men who have sex with men, followed by sex workers and their clients, intravenous drug users, and migrants. An increasing problem in the region is that many men have sex with both men and women, which is contributing to the rapid spread of the epidemic in women….”