Medical : AIDS & HIV

Though first identified in 1981, by 2004 an estimated 40 million people were living with HIV/AIDS and about 20 million had died - numbers which continue to rise as scientists race to find a cure for the worst epidemic to hit humankind since the Black Death. This book explains the science, the international and local politics, the fascinating demographics, and the devastating consequences of the disease, and explores how we have -- and must -- respond. - ;HIV/AIDS is without doubt the worst epidemic to hit humankind since the Black Death. The first case was identified in 1981; by 2004 it was estimated that about 40 million people were living with the disease, and about 20 million had died. Despite rapid scientific advances there is still no cure and the drugs are expensive and toxic. Because of controversies and taboos surrounding safe drug usage and prostitution, the numbers of people infected continues to rise. However, it is in the developing world and especially parts of Africa that the real catastrophe is unfolding. In some of the worst affected countries life expectancy has plummeted to below 35 years, which has led to a serious decline in economic growth, a sharp rise in. orphaning, and the imminent collapse of health care systems. The news is not all bleak though. There have been unprecedented breakthroughs in understanding diseases and developing drugs. Because the disease is so closely linked to sexual activity and drug use, the need to understand and change behaviour has caused us to reassess what it means to be human and how we should operate in the globalising world. This Very Short Introduction provides an introduction to the disease, tackling the science, the international and local politics,. the fascinating demographics, and the devastating consequences of the disease, and explores how we have -- and must -- respond. - ;Packed with statistics and handy explanations of science. - ;It won't make you an expert. But you'll know what you're ta more...

Price: $8.95

Around the world, telephone helplines have proved to be an accessible, affordable and acceptable source of HIV/AIDS information, counselling and referrals for callers from all walks of life. First initiated in high-income countries, helplines have expanded into many low- and middle-income countries, particularly as the latter improve their telecommunications infrastructure and identify HIV/AIDS as a pressing social concern. This Best Practice Case Study offers an opportunity to learn from the experiences of well-established helplines in India, the Philippines, South Africa, and Trinidad and Tobago. These initiatives demonstrate the principles that have made helplines globally successful, outlining the challenges facing helplines and creative approaches to meeting those challenges. more...

Price: $13.50

HIV/AIDS in the post-Soviet era may evolve into not only a humanitarian crisis, but also a significant political, economic and national security issue for the affected countries themselves and for the rest of the world. This volume addresses the multiple aspects of the epidemic for this important part of the world. more...

Price: $65.00

In recent years, Europe and Central Asia has experienced the world’s fastest growing HIV/AIDS epidemic. Yet, in the Western Balkan countries the HIV prevalence rate is under 0.1 percent, which ranks among the lowest. This may be due to a low level of infection among the population—or partly due to inadequate surveillance systems. All major contributing factors for the breakout of an HIV/AIDS epidemic are present in the Western Balkans. HIV/AIDS disproportionably affects youth (80 percent of HIV-infected people are 30 years old or younger). Most of the Western Balkan countries have very young populations, which have been affected by the process of social transition, wars, unemployment and other factors. Among youth, there is generalized use of drugs and sexual risk behavior. Therefore, the number of cases of HIV has been increasing, especially in Serbia, and the incidence of Hepatitis C has clearly increased, which suggests that sharing of infected needles is practiced by injecting drug users. Apart from human suffering, an HIV/AIDS epidemic can have a significant impact on costs of care for individuals, households, health services and society as a whole. This study has found weak public health systems and gaps in financing and institutional capacity necessary to implement evidence-based and cost-effective HIV/AIDS Strategies. Political commitment must increase for action to occur promptly. Prevention interventions are cost effective and, in the short term, affordable with own-country resources. Medium- and long-term interventions would require donor assistance. Longer-term interventions would aim at preventing poverty, exclusion and unemployment, for example, by empowering young people to participate in the regional and global labor market. more...

Price: $30.00

For ten years, Regan Hofmann lived a double life. To the world, she was a woman from Princeton who went to prep school, summered in the Hamptons and rode Thoroughbred horses. She had a great job, a loving family and friends and looks that made men turn their heads. more...

Price: $23.00