New Report Says 2.1 Million Children Worldwide Are Living with HIV/AIDS

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By Liz Highleyman

An estimated 2.1 million children under the age of 15 were living with HIV/AIDS worldwide in 2007, perhaps 15 million had lost at least one parent to the disease, and approximately 290,000 died of AIDS-related causes, according to a new report issued by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), UNICEF, and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The report, entitled "Children and AIDS: Second Stocktaking Report," looks at progress made in preventing and treating HIV/AIDS since the UNAIDS/UNICEF issued "Unite for Children, Unite against AIDS" in October 2005.

The review looked at advances in 4 key areas:

• Prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission;

• Prevention of infection among adolescents and young people;

• Treatment of pediatric patients;

• Protection and support of children affected by HIV/AIDS.

According to the report, prevention of mother-to-child transmission saw the most significant progress, with the number of pregnant HIV positive women in low and middle income counties receiving prophylactic antiretroviral therapy rising by 60%, from about 220,000 in 2005 to about 351,000 in 2006. Nevertheless, most of the more children under 15 living with HIV in 2007 were infected during gestation, delivery, or breast-feeding.

There remains an urgent need for better prevention of HIV transmission to adolescents and young people, using the best evidence-based methods. The report also calls for involving young people themselves in the design, implementation, and monitoring of prevention programs.

With regard to pediatric treatment, the report describes dramatic gains, with the number of children and adolescents receiving antiretroviral therapy rising from about 75,000 in 2005 to more than 127,000 in 2006 - an increase of 70%.

Progress has been made in providing care and social services for young people affected by AIDS, including increased school enrollment for orphans, but the report notes that children affected by HIV/AIDS are still more likely to fall behind in school and to live in poor households.

According to UNAIDS director Peter Piot, "Much more needs to be done to prevent HIV amongst young people and adolescents if we are to make a major change in the direction of the epidemic."

The full report is available online.

04/15/08

Sources

UNICEF/UNAIDS/WHO. Children and AIDS: Second Stocktaking Report.

Kaiser Family Foundation. More Than 2M Children Worldwide Living With HIV/AIDS, Report Says. April 7, 2008.