Question 3: What are the indicators of risk for HIV/AIDS infection in Louisiana?
The persons most likely to become infected with HIV are those who
engage in high-risk behaviors and who live in communities where HIV
prevalence is high. To help community planning groups understand the
differing risks for HIV infection in Louisiana, this section examines
the trends and characteristics of populations that practice high-risk
behaviors. The primary focus of this section is 3 high-risk populations:
MSM, IDUs, and heterosexual adults. In addition, 2 populations of
special interest are examined: perinatally exposed children and persons
tested for HIV.
The preceding section addressed the level of HIV infection in various
groups affected by HIV. This section examines direct and indirect
measures of risk behavior in the groups most at risk of acquiring HIV
infection. Direct measures of risk provide information about risk
behavior that is directly associated with HIV transmission. Indirect
measures do not directly describe HIV risk behaviors; rather, they are
indicators of possible HIV risk that may need further investigation. For
example, an increase in STD or teen pregnancy rates does not directly
indicate that HIV exposure is increasing but may indicate an increase in
unprotected sex.
Highlights
- There are persons living with HIV in every parish in Louisiana, and
the number continues to increase each year. At the end of 2001, a total of
13,565 persons were known to be living with HIV/AIDS in Louisiana, 6,236
(46%) of whom had a diagnosis of AIDS.
- In 2001, as in past years, the Baton Rouge region surpassed the New
Orleans region in the rates of diagnosis of HIV/AIDS (number of cases per
population in the region). However, the New Orleans region had the highest
number of HIV/AIDS cases diagnosed that year.
- Since 1996, the number of new AIDS cases and deaths of persons with
AIDS has decreased dramatically, coinciding with the widespread use of
antiretroviral therapy. However, data from recent years indicate a leveling
or a reversal of these declines, which may be due to factors such as late
testing; limited access to, or use of, health services; and the limitations
of current therapies.
- The HIV diagnosis rate for blacks continues to be disproportionately
high and, in 2001, was more than 6 times higher than that for whites. In
2001, 74% of newly diagnosed HIV cases and 75% of newly diagnosed AIDS cases
were in the black population.
- Among blacks, heterosexual contact has been the predominant mode of
exposure since 1996. Among whites, the predominant exposure remains
male-male sexual activity, although the number of cases among MSM has
declined substantially since 1993.
- For all racial groups in Louisiana, the proportion of newly diagnosed
HIV/AIDS cases reported among women has increased steadily since the
beginning of the epidemic; women represented 36% of new HIV/AIDS cases in
2001. Although HIV/AIDS rates for men have been declining since 1993, rates
for black women have remained relatively stable. Rates for white women have
also been stable, but they increased slightly from 2000 to 2001.
- Because of screening programs for pregnant women and the increased use
of antiretroviral therapy in pregnant women and their infants, perinatal
transmission rates have dropped dramatically, from more than 25% in 1993 to
5% in 2000. However, despite the low transmission rates, the number of
HIV-infected infants may continue to increase as the number of infants born
to HIV-infected mothers increases because growing numbers of women are
living with HIV.
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