A review of HIV-1 in Africa

Abstract

As the AIDS epidemic reaches a dramatic stage of development, the time for African countries to establish effective control programs has come. The history of AIDS in Africa is different from that other regions of the world. The disease developed among heterosexual communities. By 1987, over 8,000 cases of AIDS had been reported from 37 of the 47 nations of Africa. Over 2,000 of these cases were found in Uganda. However, under-reporting and under-representation of the number of actual cases is still a problem. In many cases, there has been a failure to recognize the disease. The demographic and geographic distribution of seroprevalence is discussed. Because of the inaccuracies in AIDS reporting in Africa, epidemic forecasting is difficult. If 5 million are currently infected, a potential 50 million Africans may be infected by 1993. A further discussion of the risk factors for HIV-1 holds that promiscuity is the major problem. Cures and inexpensive treatments for the infection are years away. Energy, resources, and national committees in Africa and the world must be coordinated to combat the ultimate crisis of this century.