seen on popular television shows and in award winning movies such as Dallas Buyer's Club. This article brings the facts to the disease most students have heard of but probably don't know much about. North America and South America fall into the second highest level of AIDS cases per capita; only surpassed by the southern and western regions of Africa. Africa has a rate of about 1 in every 20 adults that are infected with AIDS. The Americas have a rate of about .05% but the global prevalence is about .08% of people are currently infected. This pandemic crosses oceans with equally destructive and rapid progression infecting and killing millions of people every year. As of 2011 1.7 million people died from AIDS related diseases and 34 million people were living with the disease. These statistics are staggering but these are just the cases of the people who have been tested or who live in areas where medical records are kept and reported to the World Health Organization.
This article by the Center for Disease Control focuses primarily on the rate of AIDS and HIV in the United States. Within the national rate there is a variation between states. The first part of this article shows in a colored chart shown below each states rate of AIDS infection in people ages 16-28 in 2008. States like New York, New Jersey, Florida, Maryland, and Mississippi take the highest category with rates as high as .03% of the states population infected. Massachusetts falls in the Middle category with a rate somewhere in between .002-.0032%. The study shows that rates are higher in states that contain large metropolitan areas. AIDS and HIV are also known to be more prevalent in urban areas so states containing multiple cities have higher rates.
The second part of the article discusses how the disease is more pertinent in different ethnicities in different regions of the country. Black people hold the majority by far in all regions except for the West where White people have the highest rate with 39%. Some ethnicities may not seem to be as strongly effected but CDC says that they are faced with the epidemic with similar magnitude however their ethnicity may not have such a large holding in the community. The article goes on to describe how they are providing funding for the local government to help support communities where AIDS is a problem. They are also working to expand testing for HIV and AIDS and keeping people informed. These statistics are staggering but they are just the tip of the iceberg in some cases where communities where testing and treatment is not available.
This is relevant to what were learning in class because as we near to the present with the diseases we are studying we see how a disease can devastate people and a culture and yet it doesn't appear to be the biggest issue in the news. The deaths are not recognized for the tragedies that they are. With war and terrorism and shootings and bombings there are so many things to fear and study and fight. Yet disease gets swept under the rug when it has the highest death rate and effects millions of people every year. This information also shows how AIDS is a disease killing people in our country and some states have a serious problem on their hands. Looking at colleges all over the country its an interesting and concerning detail to know. Hopefully in years to come a cure can be found and better treatments will arise, and perhaps people will become more aware of the deadly killer that is in our back yard.
By: Courtney Driscoll
Article:
HIV and AIDS in the United States by Geographic Distribution
http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/statistics/basics/geographicdistribution.html
I really loved your article choice! This article shows that this disease is something that is common in the United States, but unfortunately even more common in places in Africa. The picture is very helpful and visual to show what amount of people per state in the United States are effected with AIDS. I think it is really amazing that the CDC is going to help places where HIV is prevalent and help out those communities while also providing testing. The best way to prevent this disease is by keeping everyone well informed.
ReplyDeleteAlthough this disease is very common in the U.S. I still feel very uneducated on it. I think that teenagers and high school students should be provided with more information to learn about the disease since it is so prevalent in the United States. The graphic of the number of cases per state interested me because you can see that in the south there are a lot more cases than the north. I also agree with Courtney on the fact that the disease is so devastating yet we don't hear about it as often on the news. It saddens me that we have yet to discover a cure or treatment for HIV/AIDS. I think it would be a great unit in our Epidemic Disease class.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you mentioned the Dallas Buyers Club. It shows that when something is so prevalent in society it begins to affect media and even art. An example of that would be Mondo, a designer a few seasons ago on project runway. He was infected with aids and decided to create fabric with a plus sign, signifying HIV positive. I think that it really cool how disease can have such an affect on the entire world's perspective of things. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteI found the part about ethnicity to be very interesting. As we have studied, certain diseases target particular victims for different reasons. For example Influenza tends to hit the young and old, and typhoid children. But applying disease to race is a different story. Yet different cultures have different customs that could lead to a variation in effect. Also I bet economic reasons play a part in infection. Since AIDs relates to sexual relations, perhaps poorer communities turn to prostitution more than a better off area. Tis interesting. Great job and fascinating article!
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you made a connection to the world we live in. I think it is good to inform people about HIV/AIDS. It is well known that AIDS has taken its toll on people and continues to do so. Honestly, I don't think I know as much about this disease as I should. It has such a huge impact on our lives and the world around us. It is always interesting to hear about new things scientists are learning because it gives me hope that there will one day be an end to this disease.
ReplyDeleteI really liked this article, like Kasey said I still feel very uneducated about HIV/AIDS as a disease, and seeing it in context helps me understand it more every day. As you mentioned, the disease is now a subject coming up in award winning movies such as Dallas Buyers Club. I think that signifies a big shift in our society from a time such as the 80s when mass hysteria made AIDS a touchy subject. By putting the effects of the disease in media, I think it will end up drawing more attention to its prevention and cure.
ReplyDeleteI like your article choice a lot, Courtney. I think this disease is really important for us to learn about because it seems to be an up and coming epidemic that is most likely to infect our generation and other young people. While reading your summary, I also thought about Mondo from Project Runway as Hannah mentioned. That series is one of the first times I had ever heard anything about HIV/AIDS and I think it's great that movies and television shows are bringing awareness to this disease. I also liked that you chose this article because the AIDS epidemic in Haiti has been a reoccurring topic in Mountains Beyond Mountains so it was great to learn some new information regarding the disease.
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