The government launches an HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention campaign
In Ceará, from 1983 to November 1, 2022, 17,627 HIV infections and 23,872 cases of AIDS were reported. Of this total, 89% of infections were diagnosed in the past decade. In these ten years there have been 9,806 AIDS cases, equal to 41% of the total.
Since 2013 there has been a progressive decline in the rate of detection of the disease, which has gone from 13.5/100,000 inhabitants to 8.6/100,000 inhabitants in 2021. This reduction was
evident since, in December 2013, the Ministry of Health established that all people diagnosed with HIV receive free treatment through the SUS.
During the same period, there has been an increase in HIV cases, which according to the Ceará Department of Health (Sesa) is related to increased access to testing. There were 690 infections reported in 2013 and 2,018 reported in 2021 in the state.
Érico Arruda, an infectious specialist at the São José Hospital (HSJ), explains that the expansion of testing and the encouragement of adherence to treatment are explanations for this scenario. “If you don’t have an early diagnosis or if you don’t start and adhere to antiretroviral therapy, it can progress to worsening health due to decreased immunity. That’s what you want to avoid,” he says.
“Antiretroviral therapy today is simpler to administer, has fewer side effects and can be started earlier. As a result, membership is less complex. Nonetheless, it ends up causing tiredness in some patients, who tend to abandon it”, comments Arruda, pointing out above all those cases in which there are no more symptoms.
“It is necessary that the patient understands the importance and makes use of the medicine. Another aspect is social and family support. To have someone who is by your side encouraging you, warning you and encouraging you to seek medicine.”
Christiane Takeda, who is also an infectious disease specialist at HSJ, points out the various ways to prevent HIV. “Health care centers distribute condoms, both for women and men, there is post-exposure prophylaxis and also, for some segments of the population, post-exposure prophylaxis”, she lists.
“The issue of HIV treatment is well underlined and people understand its importance. We still have room for improvement in prevention ”, she evaluates. “When you check for HIV, you stay healthy and don’t transmit; but the ideal is to have access to prevention and not even contract the virus ».
How to prevent against or HIV
The best technique for preventing HIV/AIDS is combined prevention, which consists in the simultaneous use of different approaches, applied at different levels, to respond to the specific needs of some segments of the population and to certain forms of HIV transmission.
According to the Ministry of Health, the use of condoms, male or female, in all sexual intercourse (oral, anal and vaginal) is the most effective method to prevent the transmission of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis B and C.
If the hazardous sexual exposure occurred less than 72 hours ago, ask about HIV post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP).
There is also pre-exposure prophylaxis, which is prescribed for people most likely to come into contact with HIV.
Sharp objects for personal use, such as shaving blades or hair removers, razors, nail clippers and the like, must not be shared with other people. If this is necessary, complete sterilization is recommended. Not even needles and syringes can be shared.
Additionally, HIV-positive mothers should use antiretrovirals during pregnancy to prevent vertical transmission and avoid breastfeeding their children.
