You
have probably seen the ads everywhere – “DONATE TO THE AIDS CAUSE AND HELP RESEARCHERS FIND A CURE.” You
might have even donated some change or even written a hefty check believing in its worthy basis. But have you ever really felt the threat of contracting AIDS with a partner you trust and have known for
a period of time? Well, the threat is apparently very real. Between January 2001 and February 2003, researchers from the North Carolina Screening and Tracing Active
Transmission (STAT) Program found 146 men and 88 women who had contracted the HIV virus in the Durham, Wake, and Orange Counties
of North Carolina. A recent study by UNC Chapel Hill researcher Lisa Hightow
reveals that around 60 students across North Carolina colleges have contracted the disease in the past year and a half. (Spivey,
2004) Though the numbers appear small, these findings are significant because
they signify the first time in twenty years of HIV research that colleges have become high-transmission areas for the AIDS
virus. Safe sex and responsible decisions are now of utmost importance to prevent
further spreading.
AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) is
a sexually transmitted disease caused by the HIV virus that attacks one’s immune system, leaving the body vulnerable
to lethal infections and cancers. In fact, AIDS is not what kills people; it
is the infections and cancers that kill them. In order for the HIV virus to reproduce,
it must infect a cell and then hide its DNA inside the host cell, so that when the cell produces proteins to stay alive, it
also unintentionally produces new viruses. Because the virus usually attacks
cells in the immune system, the immune system will fail and other infections and cancers can attack the body. (UNAIDS, 2004)
“According
to the UNAIDS 2003 Fact Sheet, over 60 million people have been affected with HIV since it was first diagnosed over 20 years
ago.” According to this document, it has also been estimated that between 2000 and 2020, over 68 million people will
die of AIDS prematurely in the 45 countries most affected by the disease. (UNAIDS,
2004) In North Carolina, there have been recent rises in confirmed cases of HIV
with an increase of 16 percent more cases in 2002 than in 2001. (AIDS Case Report for 2002, 2003) AIDS is a very real problem;
no cure has yet been found for it.
Researchers at UNC-Chapel Hill collaborating with state health researchers discovered this rise in AIDS across North
Carolina colleges while checking the results of a new HIV test administered by county health departments and private clinics
in November 2002. This new HIV test enabled the detection of HIV within two weeks
of infection whereas the old test detected after 3 months of infection. (Harvey, 2003) Dr.
Lisa Hightow, head of the study, compared results and found that 88% of the men in the study were black, 40% visited gay clubs,
36% reported having sex with both men and women, 20% met sex partners over the Internet, and 27% used ecstasy and other club
drugs. (Spivey, 2004) Though the results consisted predominantly of homosexual,
African-American men, this outbreak of HIV, if not contained, could easily transmit to women, and over time, to people of
all races in North Carolina. UNC-Chapel Hill researchers are now planning a series
of educational campaigns targeted at colleges, nightclubs, and health departments designed to prevent the insurgence of more
infected cases.
With such a potentially serious
outbreak of AIDS so close to home, the most practical thing to do is to always make responsible decisions. Though you may have heard this message numerous times, it is nevertheless even more crucial now since college
campuses are becoming high-transmission areas for AIDS. The good news is that
colleges throughout North Carolina are helping students protect themselves. Duke
University, for example, supplies condoms in dormitory vending machines so that students can conveniently practice safe sex. Some colleges such as Wake Forest are also offering free, confidential HIV testing. Taking advantage of this test would allow students to determine whether they have
contracted the virus or not and to prevent them from unknowingly spreading it to others, which would make the AIDS situation
even worse. Though the numbers of infected appear small now, it is essential
that this problem be prevented now before it spreads and becomes an even greater issue.
References
Spivey,
Angela. 2004. 2. Endeavors. Winter, 2004.
Harvey, Tom. 2003.
UNC, state health department researchers find outbreak of HIV on N.C. college campuses. Carolina. 387: 30
AIDS Case Report for 2002, North Carolina. NC
DHHS, HIV/STD
Prevention and Care Branch.
2003 <http://www.epi.state.nc.us/epi/hiv/pdf/aids2002.pdf> [accessed 2004 February 8th]
UNAIDS. Joint United Nations Programming on HIV/AIDS. 2004
<http://www.unaids.org/en/default.asp#> [accessed
2004 February 8th]