Go Back to Basics, Says UN Ahead of World AIDS Day

A UNAIDS report released in advance of World AIDS Day says countries should focus on the root causes behind HIV's continuing spread. "Not only will this approach help prevent the next 1,000 infections in each community, but it will also make money for AIDS work more effectively and help put forward a long-term and sustainable AIDS response," said Peter Piot, the agency's outgoing executive director.

Unlike in previous years, UNAIDS did not provide any new data on the number of global infections and deaths, saying these have not yet been amassed. Figures published ahead of the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City in August showed approximately 33 million people were infected with HIV in 2007, with a range of 30.3 to 36.1 million. Around 2.7 million people were newly infected last year, roughly 7,500 people per day, and deaths were estimated at about 2 million.

At a press briefing, UNAIDS' director of evidence, monitoring, and policy said "combination prevention" is needed to tackle the epidemic. Paul De Lay said such a strategy incorporates a behavioral, biomedical, and structural approach. For example, a biomedical approach could include male circumcision and using antiretrovirals to stop mother-to-child HIV transmission. A behavioral approach could include promoting condom use and reducing the number of sex partners, he said.

"The epidemic is constantly changing, and therefore the analyses of new infections must be undertaken at regular intervals," De Lay noted.

De Lay said high-risk groups such as sex workers, gay men, and injecting drug users must continue to be a primary focus of HIV prevention efforts.

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