The latest international news, analysis and features on the HIV epidemic from Avert. Share your views and expertise with your peers in the comments box below the articles.
An injectable version of the opiate substitution treatment (OST) buprenorphine – which is delivered through an implant – has been approved for use in the USA by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The number of new HIV infections in the USA has fallen by 11% between 2010 and 2015, however the rate of decline falls far short of the goals set in the 2010-2015 National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS).
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the USA have released a study of lifetime risk of HIV, concluding that if HIV infection rates remain as they are black gay and bisexual men in Ameria have a 1 in 2 risk of being diagnosed in their lifetime and Latino gay men have a risk of 1 in 4.
An adult film actor has been infected with HIV during production in the USA, prompting the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to call on the industry to re-evaluate its approach to HIV prevention, as ‘testing alone is not sufficient to prevent occupational HIV transmission’.
New research indicates that only 38% of black Americans living with HIV consistently remain in HIV care, compared to 50% for Hispanic/ Latino Americans, and 49% for white Americans.
Rural and suburban areas of the United States of America are lacking the harm reduction services needed to support increasing numbers of people who inject drugs.
A recent report has revealed that almost half of people who inject drugs in the United Kingdom are unaware they have hepatitis C.
An alarming rise in new HIV infections has been reported in Saskatchewan province, Canada. A micro-epidemic has emerged among First Nation communities, where infection rates are estimated to be eleven times higher than the national average. An infectious disease specialist working in this region believes the numbers could be even higher, as HIV testing rates are so low.
Mortality rates of black and African Americans living with HIV decreased by 28 percent from 2008 to 2012, according to new data released from the US Centres for Disease Control (CDC) last week. However, despite this consistent decline in deaths of people living with HIV (PLHIV) over time, the overall numbers and rates of deaths among black Americans are still higher than any other race or ethnicity in the United States.
Researchers have found that men who have sex with men (MSM) suffering from five specific mental health conditions, including depression, alcohol abuse, stimulant use, multi drug abuse and childhood sexual abuse, all lead to increased sexual risk behaviour and HIV infection. Until recent nothing was known about these mental health factors predicting HIV risk behaviours or becoming infected with HIV.
