From WN

HIV rates are climbing among people 50 years of age and older in Britain and across Europe, while the rate of new infections among younger people is dropping, according to new research that warns that the epidemic may be taking a new direction, The Guardian reports.

The study, from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control in Sweden, says older people are most likely to be infected through heterosexual sex. They are also likely to have more advanced disease – which will be harder to treat and could be life-threatening – when it is finally picked up.

The study’s authors suggest that the over-50s may be either complacent or ignorant of the risks of HIV, which has dropped out of the headlines since it became a treatable disease. Their doctors also tend to assume that older people are not running risks through unsafe sex.

Lead author of the study was the center’s Dr. Lara Tavoschi.

“Our findings suggest a new direction in which the HIV epidemic is evolving. This potentially is a result of older peoples’ low awareness of HIV and how it is transmitted, leading to misconceptions and low perception of their own risk.” – Lara Tavoschi
“This perception of older people not being at risk is shared by some healthcare providers, and HIV-related services focus more on younger people. Our study shows the need to ensure all ages are appropriately targeted by sexual health services,” she added.

The study, published in the Lancet HIV journal, found that one in six new cases of HIV are in people over the age of 50. Between 2004 and 2015, the rate of diagnosis in older people increased in 16 countries. That included the United Kingdom, where the rate of new diagnoses went up from 3.1 per 100,000 to 4.32. Belgium, Germany and Ireland also saw rises in the rate of infection among older people. By 2015, the rate in over-50s was highest in Estonia, Latvia, Malta and Portugal.

While the rate of newly reported cases remained steady in those aged 15 to 49, it grew by 2.1 percent each year overall in older people across the 28 European nations, increasing from 2.1 people in every 100,000 in 2004 to 2.5 per 100,000 in 2015.

Infection through sex between men increased in both age groups between 2004 and 2015. Cases due to heterosexual sex declined in younger people and remained stable in older people, while those attributable to injecting drug use also reduced in younger people but increased in older people.

WN.com, Jim Berrie

For more on this story and video go to: https://article.wn.com/view/2017/09/27/HIV_Rates_Rising_Among_Older_People_In_UK_And_Europe_Researc/