Trends in the HIV and AIDS Epidemic, 1998

As of December 1997, 641,086 Americans have been reported with AIDS. At least 385,000 of them have died. Prior to the introduction of combination therapies for HIV, AIDS incidence was increasing at a rate of less than 5% each year. Partly as a result of prevention efforts targeting those at highest risk, the epidemic had slowed considerably from the early years in the epidemic, when increases were 65% to 95% each year. In 1996, estimated AIDS incidence dropped for the first time, declining 6%. Deaths among people with AIDS also declined for the first time in 1996, dropping 25%. As new treatments have extended the healthy lifespan of many people with AIDS, AIDS prevalence has continued to increase. In 1996, an estimated 242,000 people were living with AIDS, an increase of almost 12% since 1995. If declines in AIDS cases continue, there will also be an increase in HIV prevalence, pointing to an increased need for both prevention and treatment services. Estimates suggest that 650,000 to 900,000 Americans are now living with HIV, and at least 40,000 new infections occur each year.