Straight Platform Politics

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 11

Behavioral Surveillance: Findings continued

The District’s HIV/AIDS Behavioral Surveillance (HBS) Summary Report 2008 also looked at the risk behavior of concurrency – having more than one sexual partner. The HBS Report found that having more than one sexual partner was common, even for people with primary or stable relationships.

The vast majority of participants (74.2%) reported that their most recent partner was a main partner. But 57.9% also reported that they had 2 or more sexual partners in the last 12 months and 45.9% believed their last sex partner definitely or probably had sex with someone else during the past 12 months of the relationship.  See Part 7

This means that condom use is vital even in main relationships. The Report states, “Concurrency has been shown in many studies in the United States and abroad to be a key factor in the emergence of heterosexual HIV epidemics.”

The District’s intervention and prevention strategies must include the routine offering of HIV testing to all who present themselves for health care. This is especially true for Black females since they are at great risk of being infected even if they do not manifest common risk factors.

Black females, Blacks, HBS-HET, HIV epidemic, HIV infection rates, HIV mode of transmission, HIV testing, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS intervention strategy, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, common risk factors, concurrency, condom use, early onset of sexual activity, early sexual debut, epidemic, females at risk, free condoms, heterosexual HIV epidemics, heterosexual contact, heterosexual contact transmission, heterosexuals, intervention and prevention strategies, main partner, promote-prevent-protect, relationships, risk behavior, risk behaviors, risk factors, risky behavior, risky sexual behavior, sex partners, sexual relationships, stable sexual relationships

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 7

The Statistics by Race and Gender

The 2008 Update describes the HIV/AIDS epidemic now challenging the District of Columbia. See Part 1 See Part 4

The Update reports that the number of male adults and adolescents over the age of 13 (A/A) in the District is 236,323. See Part 5 The percentages of the total male A/A population by race are: 49.7% Black, 36.5% White, 9.0% Hispanic, and 4.7% other. Of the 10,835 male A/A living with HIV/AIDS, 70.5% are Black, 21.1% White, 6.0% Hispanic, and 2.5% other.  See Part 6

The percentage of black male A/A living with HIV/AIDS is 6.5% of all black male A/A in the District. This is the highest percent with respect to race and gender. It is 6.5 times higher than the established 1% epidemic threshold. See Part 3

The percentages of the total female A/A population (270,399) by race are: 55.6% Black, 32.3% White, 7.1% Hispanic, and 5.0% other. Of the 4,285 female A/A living with HIV/AIDS, 91.1% are Black, 3.2% White, 3.1% Hispanic, and 2.6% other.

The percentage of white female A/A living with HIV/AIDS is 0.16% of all white female A/A in the District. This is the lowest percent and is 6.25 times lower than the established 1% epidemic threshold.

Blacks, District of Columbia, HIV by race, HIV cases by gender, HIV epidemic, HIV infection rates, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS percentages, HIV/AIDS rate 1%, HIV/AIDS rates, HIV/AIDS statistics, Hispanics, Update 2008, Washington D.C., Whites, epidemic, homosexuals

District Of Columbia HIV/AIDS Epidemic – Part 6

The Statistics by Race

The District of Columbia’s HIV/AIDS 2008 Update was released in March and includes many staggering facts and conclusions on the District’s current epidemic.

The Update reports the District’s total population by race as being 52.9% Black, 34.2% White, 8.0% Hispanic, and 4.9% other. These are adults and adolescents over the age of 13 (A/A). The percentages of A/A living with HIV/AIDS by race are: 4.3% Black, 1.9% Hispanic, 1.5% other, and 1.4% White.

There are 15,120 A/A living with HIV/AIDS. The percentages of this group by race are: 76.3% Black, 16.0% White, 5.2% Hispanic, and 2.5% other. Blacks comprise a little over half of the total A/A population of the District, but comprise ¾ of the A/A population living with HIV/AIDS.

The mode of transmission of HIV differs by race. Men-having-sex-with-men (MSM) is the greatest mode for white males: 82.4%. The greatest modes for black males are: 42.1% MSM, 20.0% heterosexual contact, and 19.7% injection drug user (IDU). Greatest modes for Hispanic males are: 59.3% MSM and 19.7% heterosexual contact.

Heterosexual contact is the greatest mode for females: Hispanic 70.1%, Black 58.1%, and 51.1% White.

Blacks, District of Columbia, HIV by race, HIV epidemic, HIV infection rates, HIV mode of transmission, HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS rate 1%, HIV/AIDS rate 3%, Hispanics, IDU, MSM, The District of Columbia, Washington D.C., Whites, epidemic, females at risk, heterosexual contact, heterosexual contact transmission, homosexuals, injection drug user, men having sex with men, mode of transmission, non-homosexual men, risky behavior, risky sexual behavior, unprotected sex