The overall number of AIDS cases doubled last year over 1992, after the CDC adopted an expanded definition of the disease. But the proportion of heterosexual cases would have increased under any definition. Of the 9,288 AIDS patients infected through heterosexual contact, doctors reported that 42 percent had been infected by IV-drug users. But 50 percent had partners whose risk factor was unreported or unknown. As the CDC notes in its report, that could mean that HIV is traveling freely within the heterosexual community-that heterosexual AIDS is not just an offshoot of the needleborne epidemic but a self-sustaining phenomenon.
Some parts of the population have been hit much harder than others. Of the 9,288 heterosexual cases recorded last year, women accounted for 6,056, men just 3,232. The men were 38 years old on average, the women just 33. According to the new report, African-Americans (who make up just 12 percent of the population) suffered 52 percent of the heterosexual cases, while non-Hispanic whites suffered 24 percent of the cases and Hispanics 23 percent. No one can say how far HIV will spread among heterosexuals in the United States, but as the new report makes clear, anyone having unprotected sex with multiple partners is at risk.
title: “Danger Signs” ShowToc: true date: “2023-01-09” author: “Leif Blok”
Prolonged fatigue
Insomnia
Lack of appetite, indigestion
Loss of libido
Inability to concentrate
Feeling that your life is out of control
