HIV and AIDS

In this report, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) analyzed data from the national notifiable disease reporting system for 2004-2007 from the 34 states with confidential name-based HIV reporting since 2003. Data represent injecting drug users (IDUs) who received a new diagnosis of HIV infection, regardless of when the infection was acquired and excluding IDUs categorized as men who have sex with men. Number and percentage of IDUs who were diagnosed with HIV were estimated by sex, age, race/ethnicity, and area of residence at the time of diagnosis.

This report in the form of a journal article discusses the high incidence of HIV/AIDS among Blacks in the United States and the efforts of CDC to address it. CDC initiated a variety of activities to (1) better understand the factors that drive the HIV/AIDS epidemic among Blacks in the United States, (2) expand HIV testing and access to HIV treatment, (3) develop new interventions and scale up the availability of effective interventions, and (4) mobilize Black communities to combat the HIV/AIDS crisis facing them.

This report presents a summary of the findings and recommendations of the External Peer Review (EPR) process of CDC's Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP) HIV Prevention Activities. The review consisted of convening 73 experts from state and local governments, national partner organizations, academia, community-based organizations, and risk population stakeholders from different parts of the country. These experts had experience in HIV prevention and familiarity with DHAP’s intramural and extramural activities. They examined DHAP’s HIV prevention activities.

This article discusses the problem of late HIV testing in the United States and emphasizes the importance of HIV testing, diagnosis, and treatment, soon after HIV infection and before developing AIDS, to prevent more severe illness and death and reduce HIV transmission. Findings are reported from a study in which CDC analyzed data from 1996 - 2005 from 34 states with confidential name-based reporting to determine the percentage of persons who received an AIDS diagnosis less than or equal to 3 years after receiving an HIV diagnosis.

This article describes a study in which data were analyzed from the 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) to determine the extent to which adolescents are being tested for HIV. Results indicated that nationwide, 12.9 percent of all high school students had ever been tested for HIV. Testing increased with increasing grade level and decreased with increasing age at first sexual intercourse.

This report presents data on persons infected with HIV in Guangdong Province in Southeastern China. A case-based surveillance system (CBSS) was used to collect data on persons infected with HIV, including demographic characteristics and transmission categories. With assistance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Guangdong Center for Disease Control analyzed the CBSS data for the period 1997-2007. Results indicate that the number of HIV cases increased from 102 in 1997 to 4,593 in 2007.

This report describes the case of a cardiothoracic surgeon in Israel specializing in open-heart procedures who was found to be HIV-positive in January 2007, during evaluation for a fever of recent onset. The duration of infection was unknown. A review of the patients operated on by the infected surgeon during the preceding 10 years was conducted under the auspices of the Israel Ministry of Health to determine whether any surgeon-to-patient HIV transmission had occurred. Of 1,669 patients identified, 545 received serologic testing for HIV antibody. All results were negative.

These guidelines are recommendations from CDC, the National Institutes of Health, the HIV Medicine Association of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. It targets clinicians and provides guidelines for preventing and treating opportunistic infections (OIs) among HIV-infected children.

This MMWR issue updates and combines earlier guidelines (published 2002 and 2004) for the prevention and treatment of opportunistic infections (OIs) in adults and adolescents infected with HIV. The guidelines were developed by a panel of specialists from the United States government and academic institutions and are intended for use by clinicians and other health care providers, HIV-infected patients, and policy makers in the United States. They address OIs that occur in the United States and five OIs that might be acquired during international travel.

This study discusses information on the 184 syringe exchange programs (SEPs) operating in 36 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Of these SEPs, 67% completed a mail/telephone survey conducted by North American Syringe Exchange Network (NASEN) and Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, which covered program operations for 2008. The report summarizes findings from the survey and compares them with results from a previous SEP survey for 1994-2007.