health

Health is improving for U.S. adults with HIV

Between 2000 and 2008, there was an increase in the proportion of adults in clinical care with suppressed HIV viral loads.

By — Posted Sept. 14, 2012

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

Significant health improvements have been made among HIV-infected adults in the United States, according to a study in the Sept. 4 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.

Those advancements include an increase in the proportion of people taking highly active antiretroviral therapy, researchers said. The treatment consists of using at least three drugs to maximally suppress the HIV virus and stop progression of the disease.

In 2008, 83% of HIV-infected adults who received care were prescribed the therapy, up from 74% in 2000.

“This is good news for the HIV epidemic in the U.S., but there is room for improvement,” said lead author Keri N. Althoff, PhD, MPH.

“We need to continue to focus on linking HIV-infected adults into care and effective treatment, not only for the individual’s health, but to reduce the likelihood of transmission to others,” said Althoff, an assistant professor in the Dept. of Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Maryland.

An estimated 1.2 million Americans are living with HIV, and about 20% of them are unaware of their infection, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Researchers examined data on 45,529 U.S. adults 18 and older who have HIV and received clinical care for the illness between Jan. 1, 2000, and Dec. 31, 2008. The patients were part of the North American AIDS Cohort Collaboration on Research and Design, which is the continent’s largest collection of longitudinal HIV cohort studies. The NA-ACCORD has compiled data from more than 100 clinical sites in Canada and the U.S. since 2005.

Individuals were defined as receiving clinical care if at least one measurement was taken of their HIV viral load or their CD4 cell count during the study period. Researchers found that the overall proportion of participants with a suppressed viral load rose from 46% in 2000 to 72% in 2008 (link).

“In the HIV world, we know treatment is prevention,” Althoff said. “The more individuals we have on [highly active antiretroviral therapy] who can suppress their viral load decreases the likelihood that they could transmit the virus to another person.”

During the study period, there were 5,144 deaths, and 86% of those people had their CD4 cell count measured in the 18 months before dying. Data show that median CD4 cell count levels increased in that group between 2000 and 2008.

“This suggests that people with HIV are not dying of AIDS [as frequently] as they were 10 or 15 years ago,” Althoff said.

She said more research is needed to identify what conditions are causing death among people with HIV.

Back to top


ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn