Sunday, November 22, 2009
Viral load mapping for HIV in SF
SF created a map showing viral loads in HIV patients by neighborhood. Measuring in this way is new, as compared to tracking individuals with the disease or, earlier (before medications made it more controllable) deaths. The map now gives a picture of how HIV is being addressed in different neighborhoods, not just how it's being transmitted. In other words, it's one way of visualizing disparities in care. Could have interested implications for how care is planned and improved. One point it raises is that more work needs to be done to rebrand HIV as not just a "gay disease" (already there's been a lot of work, but not enough) and also to reach out to more diverse cultural, racial and SES groups. Here's more info: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/06/health/research/06sfvirus.html
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Thanks for posting this, Andrea. It was definitely an interesting read. I also think that monitoring viral load is a novel approach to HIV monitor which makes perfect sense in this day and age of HIV. As we know, HIV in the US is no longer a death sentence and has become a manageable chronic disease.
Nevertheless, as this article demonstrates, HIV care is still lacking for certain communities. I would like to see the viral load map featured in the article juxtaposed with a map of the availability of HIV resource centers and clinics by regions of the city. This way we can begin to see which areas are in need of outreach.
What I found to be most shocking was that the average viral load count was 22,000 for SF. I would have though that a city with such a long history of HIV would be doing better. This only continues to illustrate the disparities in care that exist today.
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