Deaths due to HIV/AIDS (per 100 000 population)
Rationale for use
The mortality rates of adults and of children aged less than 15 years are leading indicators of the level of impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and of the impact of interventions, particularly the scaling-up of treatment and prevention of mother-to-child transmission in countries with generalized HIV epidemics.
Definition
Estimated mortality due to HIV/AIDS is the number of adults and children that have died in a specific year, based on the modelling of HIV surveillance data using standard and appropriate tools.
Associated terms
Adult mortality rate and children mortality rate, are rates in the strict sense, i.e. the number of deaths divided by the number of population at risk during a certain period of time and expressed as rate per 100 000 people.
Data sources
Adult and child-specific mortality numbers are derived from estimated prevalence based on HIV surveillance data from sentinel surveillance and/or household surveys and ART and PMTCT intervention coverage data.
Total population above 15 and children are derived from the UN Population Division 2006 revision.
Methods of estimation
Empirical data from different HIV surveillance sources are consolidated to obtain estimates of the level and trend of mortality in adults and children using standard methods and tools for HIV estimates that are appropriate to the pattern of the HIV epidemic. However, to obtain the best possible estimates, judgement needs to be used as to the quality of the data and how representative it is of the population. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS and the World Health Organization (UNAIDS/WHO) produce country-specific estimates every two years.
Disaggregation
By sex, for mortality in adults.
References
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Methods and tools for HIV/AIDS estimates and projections
Ward H, Walker N, Ghys PD, eds. Methods and tools for HIV/AIDS estimates and projections. Sexually Transmitted Infections, 2004, 80(Suppl 1):1–38. -
2006 Report on the global AIDS epidemic. A UNAIDS 10th anniversary special edition
UNAIDS. 2006 Report on the global AIDS epidemic. A UNAIDS 10th anniversary special edition. Geneva, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, 2006
Database
- Demographic and Health Surveys
- Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys
- Civil registration data, WHO Mortality Database
Comments
Although many countries have collected information on mortality in adults and children in recent years, underreporting is a feature of systems in many countries, partly owing to stigma and lack of diagnosis. It is crucial that civil registration systems (completeness of registration) and survey or census data-collection are of high quality; WHO does estimate the level of underestimation of civil registration systems and there clearly is substantial variation in data quality and consistency between countries.