AIDS In Africa: The Many Effects
Sam Cesafsky Hour 5
FACING THE FACTS
Alarming Statistics About AIDS
- 69 percent of all people infected with HIV, the virus causing AIDS, are in Sub-Saharan Africa alone.
- 71 percent of the HIV/AIDS-related deaths in 2011 were people living in Africa.
- AIDS makes the life expectancy in Africa lower to only about 54 years.
- Antiretroviral drug treatments greatly reduce the risk of AIDS, but is is very expensive and inaccessible for the people of Africa.
Startling Facts-African Children Dealing With AIDS
- 91 percent of children that are HIV positive reside in Africa.
- Pregnant women in Africa have about a 20-45 percent chance of giving the disease to their child throughout pregnancy, birth, or breastfeeding.
- Even if the child doesn't have AIDS, they may have a family member dying of the horrible disease making life difficult for them.
- Of all the people that died due to AIDS in 2011, 230,000 of them were children. Most of them were from Sub-Saharan Africa.
A Sign Put Up By A Villager
Many Children Are Orphans Due To AIDS
Children Make AIDS Awareness Signs
Hospitals and Health Care Providers Deal With This Disease Too
- HIV and AIDS patients stay in hospitals four times longer than other patients taking up bed space for long periods of time.
- More than half of all the hospital beds in Sub-Saharan Africa are filled with AIDS patients.
- Between 1999 and 2005, Botswana lost 17 percent of its health care staff due to HIV and AIDS.
- Hospitals don't have medical supplies and equipment that can treat patients like it can in other countries.
The Operating Rooms Aren't Sterile
The Ambulances Aren't Quite The Same
Most Hospitals Are Very Small
The Future of AIDS in Africa
Many researchers and doctors are working daily for hours on end to try and find a possible cure for this horrible disease. The future is looking bright because in December of 2013, a researcher made a discovery that a type of radioimmunotherapy can possibly eliminate HIV before it turns into AIDS. AIDS will continue to be a priority in the research world and a cure is possible according to researchers.