September 12, 2008

Most New U.S. HIV Infections Among MSM, African Americans

The majority of new HIV infections occur among gay and bisexual men, with African American people being the group most at risk, The New York Times reports. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released detailed demographic breakdowns on September 11 based on CDC data released in August. The previous data showed that new HIV infections in the United States were 40 percent higher than previously estimated.

According to the article, in the study—which used new technology that allowed researchers to better distinguish between new and old infections—African Americans account for more than 45 percent of new infections, yet only make up 12 percent of the country’s population. Black women are nearly 15 times more likely to become HIV positive than white women, while black men have six times the incidence rate of white men and nearly three times that of Latino men.

The Times reports that girls and women comprise 20 percent of new HIV infections, with 80 percent of them linked to high-risk heterosexual contact. Among newly infected men, 81 percent of white men and 63 percent of black men reported that they were gay or bisexual.

At the XVII International AIDS Conference in Mexico City, POZ sat down with the CDC’s Kevin Fenton, MD, PhD, to discuss the agency’s new HIV incidence report and the possibility of a national HIV strategic plan. Click here to watch it.

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