The United Nations estimates that in 2008: - 33.4 million people
globally were living with HIV
- 2.7 million new infections were reported and
- 2 million people were killed
by the epidemic.
Sub-Saharan Africa remains the most affected region in the global AIDS epidemic. Although just over 12% of the world's
population live in this region:
- 67% of worldwide infections are from here
- 91% of all new child infections and 68% of all new adult infections are here and
- there are an estimated 14.1 million children who have lost one or both parents to AIDS.
HIV Prevention:
- Treatment to prevent transmission to infants of HIV-positive women increased from 33% in
2007 to 45% in 2008.
- But, fewer than 40% of young people possess basic info about HIV, or know their HIV
status.
- For every two people starting treatment, 5 others become infected with the virus.
HIV Treatment:
- More than 4 million people in low- and middle-income countries had access to HIV treatment
by the end of 2008, up from 3 million at the end of 2007. This represents an increase of 36% in one year and a 10-fold
increase over 5 years.
- Despite this considerable progress, global coverage remains low: in 2008, only 42% of those
in need of treatment had access (compared with 35% in 2007).
Tuberculosis and HIV: One third of people living with HIV are co-infected with TB. Tuberculosis is a leading cause of
death among people living with HIV and yet is mostly curable and preventable.
Accordingly, an effective vaccine and new therapies are urgently needed. Gladstone scientists are dedicated to both of these
goals. Scientific interactions have been established with several different organizations to facilitate the progress of the
AIDS research effort. A few of these include close interactions with our colleagues at the University of California, San
Francisco (UCSF).
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