Call to focus on older HIV patients
"HIV-positive older adults in South Africa have high rates of chronic disease and weakness compared to those not carrying the virus." Image: skodonnell/iStockphoto As 20,000 participants meet for the start of the Global AIDS Conference in Washington DC today, a study by the University of Sydney underlines the need for a greater focus on older Africans living with HIV."HIV-positive older adults in South Africa have high rates of chronic disease and weakness compared to those not carrying the virus," said Joel Negin, from the School of Public Health at the University, who led the study, to be published in the journal AIDS.Negin co-edited the current special issue of AIDS which looks at HIV among older adults in Africa.Negin's study analysed a large World Health Organization survey on older adults in South Africa and found that HIV prevalence among adults aged 50 and older was 6.4%, compared to 16.9 in 15 to 49...