Sam Whitehead | (TNS) KFF Health News
DECATUR, Ga. — Malcolm Reid recently marked the anniversary of his HIV diagnosis on Facebook. “Diagnosed with HIV 28 years ago, AND TODAY I THRIVE,” he wrote in a post in April, which garnered dozens of responses.
Reid, an advocate for people with HIV, said he’s happy he made it to age 66. But growing older has come with a host of health issues. He survived kidney cancer and currently juggles medications to treat HIV, high blood pressure, and Type 2 diabetes. “It’s a lot to manage,” he said.
But Reid’s not complaining. When he was diagnosed, HIV was sometimes a death sentence. “I’m just happy to be here,” Reid said. “You weren’t supposed to be here, and you’re here.”
More than half of the people living with HIV in the United States are, like Reid, older than 50. Researchers estimate that 70% of people living with the virus will fall in that age range by 2030. Aging with HIV means an increased risk of other health problems, such as diabetes, depression, and heart disease, and a greater chance of developing these conditions at a younger age.
Yet the U.S. health care system isn’t prepared to handle the needs of the more than half a million people — those already infected and those newly infected with HIV — who are 50 or older, say HIV advocates, doctors, government officials, people living with HIV, and researchers.
They worry that funding constraints, an increasingly dysfunctional Congress, holes in the social safety net, untrained providers, and workforce shortages leave people aging with HIV vulnerable to poorer health, which could undermine the larger fight against the virus.
“I think we’re at a tipping point,” said Melanie Thompson, an Atlanta internal medicine doctor who specializes in HIV care and prevention. “It would be very easy to lose the substantial amount of the progress we have made.”
People are living longer with the virus due in part to the development of antiretroviral therapies — drugs that reduce the amount of virus in the body.
But aging with HIV comes with a greater risk of health problems related to inflammation from the virus and the long-term use of harsh medications. Older people often must coordinate care across specialists and are frequently on multiple prescriptions, increasing their risk for adverse drug reactions.
Some people face what researchers call the “dual stigma” of ageism and anti-HIV bias. They also have high rates of anxiety, depression, and substance use disorders.
Many have lost friends and family to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Loneliness can increase the risks of cognitive decline and other medical conditions in older adults and can lead patients to stop treatment. It isn’t an easy problem to solve, said Heidi Crane, an HIV researcher and clinician at the University of Washington.
“If I had the ability to write a prescription for a friend — someone who’s supportive and engaged and willing to go walking with you twice a week — the care I provide would be so much better,” she said.
The complexity of care is a heavy lift …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
