Consider a prevalent disease affecting your country, for example, HIV or cancer.

Looking at the
last 10 years, what is the trend of the prevalence? What could lead to an increase or decrease in
the prevalence of the disease?

Image source: https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/File:HIV_mechanism.jpeg

The virus that causes human immunodeficiency is known as HIV. If you test positive for HIV,
you have an infection that, over time, weakens your immune system and increases your risk of
developing AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). A terminal stage of HIV in which the
patient's immune system is so compromised that it cannot fight against other infections. It is
possible to get an illness if bacteria and viruses make their way into your body. Your body's
natural defenses include the white blood cells that are a component of your immune system.
When you have HIV, the virus moves through your bloodstream to infect and ultimately destroy
white blood cells. After it has infected a host, the virus will produce several copies of itself. The
infection will make your immune system less effective.
Looking at the last 10 years, what is the trend of the prevalence?
In my nation, the Philippines, there are many bisexual and homosexual individuals. And it is
already known that it is one of the causes of HIV infection. According to the research, While the
Philippines has successfully controlled the HIV epidemic among female sex workers, the country
observed a shift in the epidemic in 2007, notably among males who have sex with males and
then people who inject drugs. As a result, the Philippines has increased services tailored to other
high-risk populations. In 2016, 83% of newly reported HIV diagnoses in the Philippines were
among guys who have sex with males (MSM) and transsexual women who have sex with males
(TGW). (Philippine Addresses Rising Trend in New HIV Infections, n.d.)
The Philippines has restructured its program to extend HIV services for men who have sex with
other men and transgender women, as well as opened clinics that cater exclusively to their needs
in urban areas where the risk of HIV infection is higher. (para. 6)
Dr. Paulyn Jean Rosell-Ubial, the Secretary of the Philippines' Department of Health, stated that
‘’HIV has been one of the government's top health priorities for the past decade. The Department
of Health is committed and determined to prevent the increase in cases and begin reversing the
epidemic's trend’’. (para. 9)
Individuals are more likely to get HIV if they engage in the following behaviors and conditions:

• engaging in sexual activity (anal or vaginal) without using a condom.

• using dangerous substances like alcohol and drugs while participating in sexual activity.

• undergoing medical procedures that entail sterile cutting or piercing, hazardous injections,
blood transfusions, and tissue transplant. (HIV, 2022)

By minimizing their exposure to the risk factors, individuals can lower their chances of
becoming infected with HIV.
The following are important HIV preventive strategies that are frequently used in conjunction
with one another:

• the usage of condoms by both sexes

• HIV and STI education, counseling, and prevention

• the utilization of antiretroviral medications (ARVs) for the purpose of preventing HIV infection
(oral PrEP and long-acting products), the dipivefrine vaginal ring, and injectable long-acting
cabotegravir. (HIV, 2022),
How often do HIV-positive individuals acquire AIDS?

References

Philippine addresses rising trend in new HIV infections. (n.d.). Republic of the Philippines

Department of Heallth. https://doh.gov.ph/node/10649

HIV. (2022, November 9). https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/hiv-aids