African Americans Maintain Highest Rate of HIV Infections

African Americans Maintain Highest Rate of HIV Infections

African Americans are still the racial group mostly affected by HIV/AIDS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Of the estimated 184,991 adult and adolescent HIV infections diagnosed during 2001--2005, more than 51 percent occurred among blacks than among all other racial/ethnic populations combined. An estimated 62 percent of new HIV/AIDS diagnoses were among persons aged 25-44 years; in this age group, blacks accounted for 48 percent of new HIV/AIDS diagnoses.

“We have rates of HIV/AIDS among blacks in some American cities that are as high as in some countries in Africa,” said
Dr. Robert Janssen, director of the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention at CDC in Atlanta. ”When you look at New York City and Washington, D.C., the rates among blacks are higher than Ghana, Senegal and Chad.”

The rate of prevalence for blacks in Washington, D.C., is 3 percent, based on the number of AIDS cases being reported. However, Janssen said the total rate is probably closer to 4.5 percent, if you add the HIV infections, which the district is currently not reporting.

While in New York, according to a New York Times article, about 50 percent of AIDS-related deaths in the city occur among black women, who account for 25 percent of the city's population. In addition, black women account for 34 percent of the city's new AIDS cases -- an increase from 12 percent twenty years ago -- and approximately one in five black men ages 40 to 49 living in the city is HIV-positive, according to the Times.

In Senegal, the HIV/AIDS rate for people 15-49 years olds us stable at .9 percent; 2.3 percent in Ghana and 4.8 in Chad. While in South Africa, the prevalence rate is 18.8 percent.

Janssen said there are probably several reasons for the increase, including more testing.

“In many cases, a higher proportion of black people are being tested than any other racial group,” Janssen said. ”We are doing a better job of encouraging African Americans to tests. Every African American between 13-64 years old should know their status and take steps not to infect others.”

HIV is still the leading causing of death for African American women 25-34 years old. Among black men who sleep with men (MSM), the annual HIV/AIDS diagnosis black/white ratio to ratio (RR) of 6.9 was higher than the Hispanic/white RR of 3.1. Among females, the black/white RR was 20.5, and the Hispanic/white RR was 5.4.

“Research indicates that blacks’ sexual behavior is no different than those of whites,” Janssen said. “The most important factor in the increasing number of HIV cases in the African American community is the prevalence of HIV in the community. Racial groups tend to have sex with members of their own racial group. The mere fact that prevalence is higher among black people means that a black person having sex with another black person is more likely to bump into someone who is HIV infected than white people are.”

The report, released March 9, updates HIV/AIDS diagnoses during 2001--2005 among black adults and adolescents and other racial/ethnic populations reported to CDC through June 2006 by 33 states† that had used confidential, name-based reporting of HIV and AIDS cases since at least 2001.

The federal agency is implementing a Heightened National Response to the HIV/AIDS Crisis among African Americans to reduce the toll of this disease. This response will focus on four main areas:

• • expanding the reach of prevention services, including ensuring that federal prevention resources are expended where the need is greatest;

• increasing opportunities for diagnosing and treating HIV, including encouraging more blacks to know their HIV serostatus;

• developing new, effective, prevention interventions, including behavioral, social, and structural interventions; and

• mobilizing broader action within communities to help change community perceptions about HIV/AIDS, to motivate blacks to seek early HIV diagnosis and treatment, and to encourage healthy behaviors and community norms that prevent the spread of HIV.

Janssen said there is some good news in the analysis. The number of individuals becoming infected from intravaneous drug use is declining. During 2001--2004, HIV diagnosis rates among black males and females declined by 4.4% and 6.8%, respectively. A 2007 study reported similar declines among blacks in Florida. These declines were observed among black heterosexuals and injection-drug users but not among MSM.

Janssen said the CDC needs the support of the African American community to reduce the rising number of new HIV infections.

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