The Town Talk
Scott Rogers
Original Article: townta.lk/1KphxGi
People living with HIV or AIDS in southern states have a higher mortality rate, according to new findings by Duke University.
The South had the nation’s lowest five-year survival rate for those diagnosed with HIV/AIDS with 15 percent of people with HIV and 27 percent with AIDS dying within the first five years of their diagnosis.
Louisiana was one of nine southern states with the poorest rates of survival. Younger, rural, African-American females who attributed their HIV infection to heterosexual sex were among the majority of patients with the worse survival rate.
Louisiana had the lowest survival rates after a diagnosis, followed by Mississippi. In Louisiana, 19 percent of people diagnosed with HIV died within five years and one-third of people diagnosed with AIDS died within five years.
"The targeted states with the most concerning mortality statistics, particularly Louisiana, may especially be in need of focused attention on addressing the factors contributing to these concerning statistics," the report stated.
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