What is being done to reduce the number of people dying in the early months of treatment, or are those who are lost to follow-up?
A. WHO and partners are working on developing and establishing better patient tracking systems. Early diagnosis and referral to treatment is critical to decreasing death rates and maximizing the impact of ARV therapy for people living with HIV/AIDS. Early diagnosis requires continued, ongoing expansion of access to HIV testing and counselling. While the availability and uptake of HIV testing and counselling increased substantially between 2006 and 2007 in 12 countries reporting comparable data, recent population-based surveys indicate that only about 20% of people living with HIV/AIDS knew their HIV status. Only about 7% of men and women in low- and middle-income countries had an HIV test between 2006 and 2007. Diagnosis of HIV in the late disease stage greatly reduces the effectiveness of ARV therapy. Health systems must also be strengthened to increase the availability and acceptability of ARV therapy and increase the number of patients who start and remain on therapy. Patient monito
Related Questions
- Why are people 65 and older prioritized for antiviral treatment if they get sick with the flu, but they are not in one of the early groups prioritized to get H1N1 vaccine?
- What is being done to reduce the number of people dying in the early months of treatment, or are those who are lost to follow-up?
- Why is early treatment important for people with RA?
