World AIDS Day 2011 in Fairfax County

Today in the United States and all across the globe is World AIDS Day or AIDS Awareness Day.

World AIDS Day began in 1988 and is recognized annually on Dec. 1. It was created to raise awareness about Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), which can cause Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) if left untreated. The theme for the 2011 World AIDS Day is Leading with Science, Uniting for Action.

The first reported cases of HIV/AIDS were in 1981. Since then, HIV/AIDS has become a global epidemic, affecting an estimated 34 million people in the world, according to UNAIDS. People with HIV and AIDS tend to live in low to middle income countries and there were an estimated 1.8 million AIDS-related deaths in 2010.

Fairfax County and HIV/AIDS By The Numbers

According to the 2010 Communicable Disease Summary Report released by Fairfax County (See PDF at right or click here), the number of reported cases for AIDS or HIV has fluctuated over the last 10 years. There were 93 reported cases of AIDS in 2001 and there were 52 in 2010. Of the HIV cases between 2001 and 2010, 75 percent were male. The common age at diagnosis was between 30 and 39 years old.

                                        AIDS Reported Cases in Fairfax County 2001-2010

52

The number of reported HIV infections stayed consistently above 100 over the last decade, reaching as high as the mid-100s in some years. In 2001, there were 109 reported cases. The highest was in 2006 with 149 cases reported in the county. There were 93 reported cases of HIV infections in Fairfax County in 2010.

                                        HIV Infections Reported Cases in Fairfax County 2001-2010

By the end of 2010, approximately 2,160 Fairfax County residents were reported to be living with HIV or AIDS. The report identified non-Hispanic blacks as having a 10 times greater incidence rate than white residents and Hispanics with a rate of four times that among whites (see chart figure 5 at right).

In the state of Virginia, blacks represented approximately 23 percent of the population in 2009, but accounted for nearly 59 percent of new HIV infections. The rate of females newly infected with HIV was also significantly lower than males. According to statistics from the Virginia Department of Health, one in every 4,762 Virginia males were newly infected with HIV, compared to one in every 14,286 females.

World AIDS Day Events and Where to Get Tested

President Barack Obama is scheduled to speak at George Washington University about HIV/AIDS and there will also be a free screening of the movie “The Other City” at Inova Alexandria Hospital.

Every Fairfax County health department clinic offers free HIV testing, including STD clinics. The also offers anonymous HIV testing on the first and third Wednesday of each month between 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. All county health department offices are open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. To confirm operating hours for individual clinics, call 703-246-2411.

Locations for HIV and STD testing places in or near Fairfax County

8136 Old Keene Mill Rd Ste A100, Springfield
703-569-1031

VDH Fairfax County Health Department - Falls Church

Free HIV testing, conventional HIV blood testing, conventional HIV oral testing, rapid HIV blood testing, rapid HIV oral testing

370 S Washington St Ste 300, Falls Church

703-533-5651
800-230-7526

All residents should be aware of Virginia’s "opt-out" screening process for HIV testing. The process, which went into effect in 2008, states that consent for testing is assumed unless the patient verbally declines it. All medical providers have to tell patients if an HIV test is planned and provide information, as well as inform the patient of their right to decline. If a patient does decline, the providor will make a notation in the patient’s medical record.

For more information about HIV/AIDS, visit the Fairfax County website for HIV and AIDS testing: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/hd/hiv-testing-aids/