HIV and older people
HIV attitudes, awareness and testing among older adults in Africa
Negin J, Nemser B, Cumming R, Lelerai E, Ben Amor Y, Pronyk P. AIDS Behav. 2011 Jul 8.
In Africa, older adults aged 50 and older are still sexually active and play a critical role as caregivers, yet little is known about their attitudes towards HIV and awareness of services. In this study, surveys were conducted in nine African sites. A multilevel model was fitted to evaluate the relationship between age and outcome variables. The study reveals that people aged 50 years and older have lower levels of HIV-related knowledge and awareness than those aged 25-49. Older adults were less likely to have been tested for HIV and women aged 50 and older showed particularly low levels of awareness.
For abstract access click here
Editor’s note: In 2010, a study estimated that 3 million people aged 50 and over were living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa, representing fully 14% of those over age 15 with HIV infection. Some of these people have aged into this age category due to the life-prolonging benefits of antiretroviral therapy but others are becoming newly infected each day. Many do not know that they have HIV infection. Why do we never hear about older people with HIV? Our HIV prevention progress indicators for sexual transmission refer to people aged 15-49 years and prevalence data collected through Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and presented by UNAIDS do not include people aged 50 years and older. This measurement neglect is reflected in lack of programming to raise awareness and knowledge levels, develop communication and condom negotiation skills, and address stigma and discrimination in this age group commonly seen primarily as a caregiver source. Some countries are jumping ahead: South Africa has held caregiver workshops to improve attitudes and knowledge and has added males older than 50 to its list of most-at-risk populations (key populations). Across the nine clusters in eight countries in this Millennium Villages Project study, the lowest ‘ever tested for HIV’ levels were in Senegal (0% for both men and women) and the highest in Rwanda (23% for men and 17% for women). More attention to people aged 50 and older is needed now if they are to avoid HIV infection, access HIV testing, start timely antiretroviral treatment, and have a positive intergenerational influence on community attitudes and knowledge as sexually active and informed educators, as well as caretakers.
