HIV INFECTIONS AND DEATHS DROP
Nov 24th, 2009 by admin
The number of new HIV infections around the world has dropped by 17 per cent in the past eight years, according to a new United Nations report. The figures also reveal a reduction of more than 10 per cent in the HIV death rate as a result of greater access to anti-retroviral drugs. Because fewer people are dying of HIV, the number of people living with the virus worldwide has increased from 33 million in 2007 to 33.4 million in 2008. Two thirds of people with HIV are in Sub-Saharan Africa. The report was released today by the World Health Organization and the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS. Overall, it estimates that HIV has so far infected almost 60 million people and killed 25 million others.
