According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of people living with HIV/ AIDS over 50 years of age has increased 77% from 2001 to 2005 (from 64,000 to 116,000). The New York Times reports that this age group now represents more than a quarter of all cases in the United States. Clearly, advances in medical treatment have allowed HIV/AIDS patients to live longer, but at what cost? With the longevity has come a range of unexpected serious medical conditions that can be worse than the disease itself.

The Times examined the “graying of the AIDS epidemic” and its link to many premature health problems including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis and depression. Twenty-five years ago, AIDS meant a speedy death sentence. Today, patients are living longer thanks to a variety of drug treatments and a continuum of support services. Medical professionals are now encountering a disproportionate number of ailments among the first wave of AIDS survivors to live past age 50. Although the first results are not conclusive, experts are coming to believe that the immune system and internal organs may be severely impacted before the patient starts the drug regime and those drugs then produce additional complications, according to the Times.

The research on AIDS and aging has barely begun. Most older people are excluded from drug trials and there is little information on long-term side effects of the drugs. Those who think HIV/AIDS is a disease manageable by taking a few pills are sorely mistaken.

(Gross, New York Times, 1/6)

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