Wilkes-Barre Times Leader Examines ‘Changing Face’ of HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Pennsylvania
The Wilkes-Barre Times Leader on Sunday examined the "changing face" of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Pennsylvania in the first article of a two-part series. Although the majority of people living with HIV/AIDS in the state are men, the number of HIV-positive women and teenagers is "on the rise," according to the Times Leader. Approximately 35% of clients at the Wyoming Valley AIDS Council are women -- an increase from 19% in 1994, according to case manager Chris Kupchik. Moreover, the proportion of female HIV/AIDS patients in a six-county region in the northeast part of the state increased from 13% between 1980 and 1997 to 19% between 1998 and 2003, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. According to some HIV/AIDS advocates, the disease is increasingly spread through injection drug use -- including steroid use among high school and college students. Unsafe sex practices also are resulting in a growing number of HIV-positive teenagers, according to Kupchik (Shurmaitis, Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, 10/17). The complete article is available online. The second article is scheduled to be published Oct. 24.
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