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Although AIDS-related deaths have declined in recent years, the epidemic still killed 680,000 people in 2020.
2021 marks 40 years since AIDS was discovered 1981.
Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a chronic and life-threatening disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
HIV attacks the immune system, weakening it to the point where it cannot fight infections.
According to UNAIDS, 37.7 million people will be living with HIV worldwide by 2020.
By 2020, about 1.5 million people will be infected with HIV, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
World AIDS Day, which is celebrated every year on December 1, is a day to raise awareness of the AIDS pandemic and the mourning of those who have died as a result of the disease.
Global HIV / AIDS
HIV / AIDS has killed 36.3 million people and infected 79.3 million in the last 40 years.
Although deaths have dropped by almost 50 percent since 2010, by 2020 about 680,000 people will have died from AIDS-related illnesses.
New HIV infections
By 2020, approximately 1.5 million people had contracted HIV, and women and girls had half of the new infections. Every week, about 5,000 young women between the ages of 15 and 24 are infected, according to UNAIDS.
More than half of the world’s HIV-positive population (37.6 million out of 20.6 million) lives in East and South Africa. By 2020, the region had 670,000 new infections and 310,000 AIDS-related deaths.
In some regions, women who suffer from physical or sexual violence are 1.5 times more likely to contract HIV. Worldwide, 35 percent of women have been sexually or physically assaulted by a partner, according to the WHO.
The global distribution of AIDS cases and deaths is presented in the table below.
Prevention and treatment options
UNAIDS has recommended a variety of tools and treatments for HIV.
Sex education is essential to understand how young people can protect themselves from sexually transmitted diseases (such as AIDS) and prevent unwanted pregnancies.
- Access to antiretroviral therapy
In 2020, at least 27.5 million people received antiretroviral therapy (ART) – a treatment that reduces the amount of HIV in the blood (also known as viral load).
According to UNAIDS, about 800,000 children aged 0-14 years living with HIV did not receive HIV treatment in 2020.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) involves taking antiretroviral drugs before being exposed to HIV. UNAIDS says this has been effective in all populations.
- Voluntary male circumcision policies
In countries with high rates of HIV transmission, voluntary male medical circumcision (VMMC) may help reduce transmission. In 2020, 2.8 million men passed through the VNMC, compared to 4.1 million in 2019, mainly due to COVID-19.
COVID-19 and HIV
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted medical services and treatments, leaving many living in the most vulnerable areas with HIV in need of care.
“We know that fewer people have had access to medicines to prevent HIV. We also know that fewer people around the world come to be tested for HIV, ”UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said at a news conference on Tuesday.
“We also know that the spread of treatment has slowed down and people have stopped giving treatments and not receiving medication.”
In addition, because they are damaged by the immune system, people living with HIV have a much higher chance of developing diseases caused by COVID-19.
As of November 2021, there were only 7 percent of all people living in Africa vaccinated Against COVID-19, according to Our World in Data.
The map below shows how COVID vaccination rates compare to HIV prevalence.
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