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According to the most recent estimates there are about 35 million cases of HIV/AIDS worldwide (Avert, 2012). The majority of these cases (about 68%) are located in Sub Saharan Africa, but numbers are quickly growing in other regions as well. While the most common risk factors for infection are reported as unprotected sex and intravenous drug abuse; other non-behavioral factors including poverty, gender inequality, lack of education and resources, and political unrest are just as important. In the US and other developed countries the greatest prevalence of HIV/AIDS continues to be among men who have sex with men (MSM). In poorer developing countries, women are equally infected. In 2010, for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, women accounted for 50% of all infections globally (Avert, 2012).
| Table 1. HIV/AIDS Prevalence by Region 2010 (Avert, 2012) |
Region |
Adults and Children Living with HIV/AIDS |
New Cases 2012 |
Adult Prevalence |
Sub Saharan Africa |
22.9 Million |
1.9 Million |
5.0% |
| |
|
|
|
| South and South East Asia |
4 Million |
270,000 |
0.3% |
| |
|
|
|
| Eastern Europe and Central Asia |
1.5 Million |
160,000 |
0.9% |
|
|
|
|
Latin America |
1.5 Million |
100,000 |
0.4% |
|
|
|
|
| North America |
1.3 Million |
58,000 |
0.6% |
|
|
|
|
Western and Central Europe |
840,000 |
30,000 |
0.2% |
|
|
|
|
Eastern Asia |
790,000 |
88,000 |
0.1% |
|
|
|
|
North Africa and the Middle East |
470,000 |
59,000 |
0.2% |
|
|
|
|
Caribbean |
200,000 |
12,000 |
.09% |
Continue on to HIV/AIDS in the US |
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