Who is most likely to be affected by HIV?
In the United States, gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men are the population most affected by HIV. According to CDC, in 2018, gay and bisexual men accounted for 69% of new HIV diagnoses. By race/ethnicity, Blacks/African Americans and Hispanics/Latinos are disproportionately affected by HIV compared to other racial and ethnic groups.
What is the highest-risk behavior for HIV infection?
Anal sex is the highest-risk behavior. Fortunately, there are more HIV prevention tools available today than ever before.
Why do I need to Know my HIV status?
Knowing your HIV status gives you powerful information to help you take steps to keep you and your partner (s) healthy: If you test positive, you can start HIV treatment to stay healthy and prevent transmitting HIV to others. If you test negative, you can use HIV prevention tools to reduce your risk of getting HIV in the future.
How is HIV diagnosed and treated?
HIV infection is often diagnosed through rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), which detect the presence or absence of HIV antibodies. Most often these tests provide same-day test results, which are essential for same day diagnosis and early treatment and care.
Who is at high risk for HIV?
Gay or bisexual MSM are the most severely affected population. MSM account for just a small fraction (2 percent) of the total U.S. population, yet nearly two-thirds of all new infections occurred within this group in 2009, and one-half of all people living with HIV in 2008 were MSM.
Why do HIV positive people receive treatments?
HIV treatment reduces the amount of HIV in the blood (viral load). Taking your HIV medicine as prescribed will help keep your viral load low. HIV treatment can make the viral load very low (viral suppression). Viral suppression means having less than 200 copies of HIV per milliliter of blood.
What is a treatment option for someone who has HIV?
The treatment for HIV is called antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART involves taking a combination of HIV medicines (called an HIV treatment regimen) every day. ART is recommended for everyone who has HIV. ART cannot cure HIV, but HIV medicines help people with HIV live longer, healthier lives.
What age group has the highest rate of HIV?
By age group, in 2019, the number of new HIV diagnoses was highest among people aged 25 to 29. From 2015 through 2019, HIV diagnoses increased among persons aged 13-24 years, 35-44 years, and 45-54 years. Diagnoses remained stable among persons aged 25-35 years and persons aged 55 years and over.
What is HIV treatment?
HIV treatment (antiretroviral therapy or ART) involves taking medicine as prescribed by a health care provider. HIV treatment reduces the amount of...
When should I start HIV treatment?
Start HIV treatment as soon as possible after diagnosis. All people with HIV should take HIV treatment, no matter how long they’ve had HIV or how h...
What if I delay HIV treatment?
If you delay treatment, HIV will continue to harm your immune system. Delaying treatment will put you at higher risk for transmitting HIV to your p...
Are there different types of HIV treatment?
There are two types of HIV treatment: pills and shots. Pills are recommended for people who are just starting HIV treatment. There are many FDA-app...
What are HIV treatment shots?
HIV treatment shots are long-acting injections used to treat people with HIV. The shots are given by your health care provider and require routine...
Can I switch my HIV treatment from pills to shots?
Talk to your health care provider about changing your HIV treatment plan. Shots may be right for you if you are an adult with HIV who has an undete...
What are the benefits of taking my HIV treatment as prescribed?
HIV treatment reduces the amount of HIV in the blood (viral load). Taking your HIV medicine as prescribed will help keep your viral load low. HIV t...
Does HIV treatment cause side effects?
HIV treatment can cause side effects in some people. However, not everyone experiences side effects. The most common side effects are Nausea and vo...
What should I do if I’m thinking about having a baby?
Let your health care provider know if you or your partner is pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant. They will determine the right type of HIV...
Can I take birth control while on HIV treatment?
You can use any method of birth control to prevent pregnancy. However, some HIV treatment may make hormone-based birth control less effective. Talk...
Men Who Have Sex with Men
Gay or bisexual MSM are the most severely affected population. MSM account for just a small fraction (2 percent) of the total U.S. population, yet nearly two-thirds of all new infections occurred within this group in 2009, and one-half of all people living with HIV in 2008 were MSM.
Injection Drug Users
Injection drug use has long been associated directly or indirectly with approximately one-third of AIDS cases in the United States. The fact that IDUs made up only 8 percent of new HIV infections in 2010 versus 23 percent in 1994–2000 demonstrates the progress made in HIV prevention and treatment within this population.
Hepatitis C and Co-Infection with HIV
Hepatitis C virus (HCV), a leading cause of liver disease, is highly prevalent among injection drug users and often co-occurs with HIV. In the United States, an estimated 3.2 million people are chronically infected with HCV, 22 with injection drug use being the main driver.
Women
Heterosexual contact with an HIV+ partner accounted for over one-quarter of all new infections in 2010 and is the main way that women contract the virus (see figure), especially within ethnic minority communities. Regional variations of HIV incidence in women have changed over time.
Ethnic Minorities
HIV surveillance data show that the rates of new HIV infection are disproportionately highest within ethnic minority populations. African- Americans account for a higher proportion of HIV infections than any other population at all stages of the disease from initial infection to death (see text box).
Youth
Young people are also at risk for HIV infection. Approximately 9,800 people aged 13–24 were diagnosed with HIV in 2010, representing 20 percent of newly diagnosed cases, with the highest rate occurring among those aged 20–24.
Older People
Sixteen (16) percent of new diagnoses of HIV infection in the United States in 2010 occurred among individuals over the age of 50, and this number has been increasing for the past 11 years. 26 Some older persons do not believe they are at risk and thus engage in unsafe sexual practices.
What happens if you test positive for HIV?
If you test positive, you can start HIV treatment to stay healthy and prevent transmitting HIV to others. If you test negative, you can use HIV prevention tools to reduce your risk of getting HIV in the future.
What happens if you live in a community with HIV?
Communities. When you live in a community where many people have HIV infection, the chance of being exposed to HIV by having sex or sharing needles or other injection equipment with someone who has HIV is higher.
What is PREP in HIV?
These include using condoms correctly, every time you have sex; pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a prevention method in which the HIV-negative partner takes daily HIV medicine to prevent HIV; and treatment as prevention, a method in which the HIV-positive partner takes daily HIV medicine to achieve and maintain an undetectable viral load.
Is HIV risk different for different groups?
Is the Risk of HIV Different for Different Groups? HIV can affect anyone regardless of sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, gender, age, or where they live. However, certain groups of people in the United States are more likely to get HIV than others because of particular factors, including the communities in which they live, ...
Can HIV be transmitted through sex?
If a person with HIV takes HIV treatment every day exactly as prescribed and gets and keeps an undetectable viral load, they have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to their partners through sex. Visit our U.S. Statistics page for more information on how HIV affects different populations.
Grace's story
Grace was dating again. She and George, a family friend she had known for years, became quite close and their relationship became sexual. Because she wasn't worried about getting pregnant, Grace didn't think about using condoms. And, because she had known George for so long, she didn't think to ask him about his sexual history.
HIV and COVID-19
People with HIV can be more likely to experience severe illness from COVID-19. NIH has provided COVID-19 treatment guidelines for people who have HIV. It is highly recommended that people continue to follow CDC safety guidelines and get vaccinated if they can. Remember to practice social distancing and wear a mask.
Where can I find a place to get tested for HIV?
Your doctor or other health care provider can test you for HIV or tell you where you can get tested. Or, the following resources can help you find a testing location:
Talk to your partner (s) about their drug and sexual history
Learning more about HIV risks can help you stay healthy. Even though it may be hard to do, ask your partner about his or her sexual history and whether he or she has ever shared needles. You might ask: Have you been tested for HIV? Have you ever had unprotected sex? Have you injected drugs or shared needles with someone else?
What is high cholesterol?
High cholesterol (also called hyperlipidemia) refers to high levels of cholesterol in the blood. High cholesterol increases the risk of heart disease. Risk factors for high cholesterol include a high-fat diet, physical inactivity, and smoking.
Can HIV cause high cholesterol?
In people with HIV, treatment for high cholesterol may include changing an HIV regimen to avoid taking HIV medicines that can increase cholesterol levels. Some HIV medicines can interact with medicines that lower cholesterol levels. Health care providers carefully consider potential drug interactions between HIV medicines ...
How can HIV be diagnosed?
HIV can be diagnosed through rapid diagnostic tests that provide same-day results. This greatly facilitates early diagnosis and linkage with treatment and care. People can also use HIV self-tests to test themselves. However, no single test can provide a full HIV diagnosis; confirmatory testing is required, conducted by a qualified and trained health or community worker at a community centre or clinic. HIV infection can be detected with great accuracy using WHO prequalified tests within a nationally approved testing strategy.
What is the most advanced stage of HIV?
The most advanced stage of HIV infection is acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), which can take many years to develop if not treated, depending on the individual. AIDS is defined by the development of certain cancers, infections or other severe long-term clinical manifestations.
How does HIV treatment work?
HIV disease can be managed by treatment regimens composed of a combination of three or more antiretroviral (ARV) drugs. Current antiretroviral therapy (ART) does not cure HIV infection but highly suppresses viral replication within a person's body and allows an individual's immune system recovery to strengthen and regain the capacity to fight off opportunistic infections and some cancers.
What are the key approaches to HIV prevention?
Key approaches for HIV prevention, which are often used in combination, include: male and female condom use; testing and counselling for HIV and STIs; testing and counselling for linkages to tuberculosis (TB) care; voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC); use of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) for prevention;
What are the conditions that put people at greater risk of contracting HIV?
Behaviours and conditions that put individuals at greater risk of contracting HIV include: having unprotected anal or vaginal sex; having another sexually transmitted infection (STI) such as syphilis, herpes, chlamydia, gonorrhoea and bacterial vaginosis;
When can a child get tested for HIV?
For children less than 18 months of age, serological testing is not sufficient to identify HIV infection – virological testing must be provided as early as birth or at 6 weeks of age.
How long does it take for a person to develop antibodies to HIV?
In most cases, people develop antibodies to HIV within 28 days of infection.
What age group is most likely to be at risk for HIV?
Persons who are older than 50 years of age tend to underestimate HIV risk acquisition. Older persons with HIV have higher rates of comorbid conditions than persons without HIV and many older persons with HIV have multimorbidity that requires taking many non-antiretroviral medications.
How does HIV affect quality of life?
The prevalence of hypogonadism among men with HIV who are 50 years of age or older may be as high as 32% and hypogonadism-related symptoms may negatively impact quality of life by causing fatigue, depression, impaired concentration, sleep disturbance, and decreased libido. [ 74] .
How does HIV affect aging?
The impact of HIV on aging is not entirely clear. With the benefit of antiretroviral therapy, most persons with HIV live healthy and long lives, whereas others struggle with multiple comorbidities that negatively impact their quality of life. Many comorbid medical conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, renal disease, and cancer, occur frequently in older persons with HIV. [ 6, 7, 8, 9] These HIV-associated non-AIDS conditions are likely the manifestation of an interplay of factors, including chronic inflammation, immune senescence, microbial translocation, and changes in the gut microbiome, all of which may contribute to accelerated aging and an increased overall burden of disease in the population with HIV. [ 10, 11, 12]
How does HIV affect life expectancy?
With the advent of potent antiretroviral therapies, the life expectancy of individuals with HIV has increased dramatically, resulting in an HIV epidemic with an aging population. Life expectancy among persons with HIV who receive antiretroviral treatment now approaches that of the general population. [ 1, 2, 3, 4] The changing of the HIV epidemic to increasing involve older persons highlights several health care needs: (1) medical care systems with the capacity to provide clinical services for a large cohort of older persons living with HIV, (2) active screening programs to detect HIV in older persons, and (3) implementation of strategies to prevent forward transmission of HIV from older persons.
What are the comorbidities of HIV?
[ 9, 13, 14, 15, 16] In one analysis involving United States veterans with HIV, 53% of persons aged 50 to 59 years had at least one comorbid medical disease, and this number increased to 66% in persons 60 years of age and older. [ 17] As a result of comorbidities, many older persons with HIV take multiple non-antiretroviral medications. Thus, older persons with HIV often require a particularly high intensity of medical care, as they generally have an increased prevalence of comorbid medical conditions and often have polypharmacy. [ 18]
What is the HIV Aging Consensus Project?
To address the complexities of managing older persons with HIV, the HIV Aging Consensus Project, a collaborative report produced by the American Academy of HIV Medicine, the AIDS Community Research Initiative of America, and the American Geriatrics Society, advances a new paradigm of coordinated, patient-centered HIV care that strives to maximize functional status and improve quality of life for those individuals with HIV living into their fifth decade and beyond. [ 19, 20, 21]
What is the target HBA1C for frail people?
[ 65] Some experts suggest the target HbA1c for frail patients should be less than 8.0% rather than less than 6.5%, especially if they have a life expectancy of less than 5 years or are at high risk for hypoglycemia or drug interactions. [ 20]
Men Who Have Sex with Men
Injection Drug Users
- Injection drug use has long been associated directly or indirectly with approximately one-third of AIDS cases in the United States. The fact that IDUs made up only 8 percent of new HIV infections in 2010 versus 23 percent in 1994–2000 demonstrates the progress made in HIV prevention and treatment within this population. Still, much work remains; while there may be fewer new infecti…
Women
- Heterosexual contact with an HIV+ partner accounted for over one-quarter of all new infections in 2010 and is the main way that women contract the virus (see figure), especially within ethnic minority communities. Regional variations of HIV incidence in women have changed over time. In the early years of the epidemic, incidence in women predominated in the Northeast, but infectio…
Ethnic Minorities
- HIV surveillance data show that the rates of new HIV infection are disproportionately highest within ethnic minority populations. African- Americans account for a higher proportion of HIV infections than any other population at all stages of the disease from initial infection to death (see text box). Moreover, specific minority subgroups are at particular risk. Nearly two-thirds (64 perc…
Youth
- Young people are also at risk for HIV infection. Approximately 9,800 people aged 13–24 were diagnosed with HIV in 2010, representing 20 percent of newly diagnosed cases, with the highest rate occurring among those aged 20–24. Particular HIV risk behaviors within this age group include sexual experimentation and drug abuse, which are often influence...
Older People
- Sixteen (16) percent of new diagnoses of HIV infection in the United States in 2010 occurred among individuals over the age of 50, and this number has been increasing for the past 11 years.26Some older persons do not believe they are at risk and thus engage in unsafe sexual practices. The problem is further exacerbated by healthcare professionals who underestimate th…
Criminal Justice System
- The criminal justice system is burdened with a significant population of HIV-infected individuals that can be 2 to 5 times larger than that in the surrounding community.29 An estimated 1 in 7 HIV+ individuals living in the United States passes through this system each year.30 The criminal justice system is also burdened with significant substance abuse, with about one-half of Federa…
Is The Risk of HIV Different For Different Groups?
What Should I Do If I Think I’m at Risk For HIV?
- If you think you’re at risk for getting HIV, or that you might already have HIV, get tested and learn about the effective HIV prevention and treatment options available today. Testing is the only way to know for sure if you have HIV. Find out whether testing is recommended for you. Many HIV tests are now quick, free, and painless. Ask your health care provider for an HIV test or use the H…
Learn More About Groups at Higher Risk For HIV
- The CDC fact sheets listed below provide in-depth information about groups at greater risk for HIV. More links are provided under Additional Resources.