HIV continues to pose a major threat to the health and well-being of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States

by Maria E. Alvarez, MPA and Margaret Torres-Vazquez, MS

More than 1 million Americans are living with HIV, and although non-Hispanic blacks are the most affected racial/ethnic group accounting for 47% of new HIV diagnoses in 2006, Hispanics are also disproportionately affected. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Hispanics accounted for 22% of new HIV diagnoses in 2006 (33 states and Puerto Rico).  Rate of HIV diagnoses for Hispanic males is approximately three times higher than the rate among white males; and for Hispanic females HIV diagnoses rates is five times greater than among white females.  In addition, more than half of the cumulative AIDS cases reported in the United States and dependent areas continue to be in persons of minority races/ethnicities.  Hispanics also account for a disproportionate share of AIDS cases. In 2006, Hispanics accounted for 15% of the population of the 50 states and the District of Columbia; yet, from the beginning of the epidemic through 2006, Hispanics account for 19% of the total number of AIDS cases reported to CDC.

Aggressively confronting the epidemic among Hispanics/Latinos is one of CDC’s highest HIV prevention priorities.  In May 2007, the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP) created the Hispanic/Latino Executive Committee (HLEC) to guide CDC’s activities related to HIV prevention among Hispanics, expand partnerships, ensure a comprehensive plan of action is developed to reduce the numbers of new infections among Hispanics, and to increase the number of culturally appropriate prevention, care and treatment service available for Hispanics.  HLEC, who is chaired by Acting Associate Director Maria E. Alvarez, has recently hosted a TRIP (Turning Research into Practice) presentation, on December 3, 2008, which featured five Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) Interns. The TRIP which is held every Wednesday from 9:00 am to 10:00 am at CDC Corporate Square campus yielded over 75 participants who listened, learned and networked with the interns’ regarding their respective research and translation projects.

After HLEC Chair Maria Alvarez provided a brief HLEC and HACU overview, the following interns presented their internship experiences and projects: 

Ms Joy Archuleta, who interned at the Prevention Evaluation Branch under the supervision of Dr Denise Duran, presented her results on HIV Testing Among Hispanics: A Literature Review.  The main purpose of this study covered lack of comprehensive literature review for HIV testing among Hispanics.  This literature review will be used for an HIV counseling and testing publication.  Among the relevant outcomes that were reported are that: knowledge of treatment for HIV/AIDS was lower among African American and Latinos when compared to Caucasians; testing varied by age and race; late diagnosis was associated with increasing age, more likely in Hispanics and African American, and do not received Clinical Treatment; Hispanics do present more advanced HIV disease when compared to whites; and barriers to HIV Testing among Hispanics result in Hispanics being less likely to be tested due to long waiting lines and lack of translation services.

Ms. Karen Pabón-Cruz, who interned at the Epidemiology Branch under the supervision of Dr Kenneth Dominguez, presented her results on the Predictors of and clinical outcomes of smoking in HIV-infected youth. This is the first known attempt to describe the relation between smoking and clinical outcomes in HIV-infected youth.  Preliminary results show that smoking appears to be associated with worse clinical outcomes.

Mr. Gerardo Pacheco and Mr. Javier Rodríguez, who both interned at the Capacity Building Branch under the supervision of Dr JoAna Stallworth and Mr. Julio Dicent-Tallipierre, presented their results on the Review and translation of behavioral interventions for use by Community-based Organizations serving Spanish-speaking clients and Spanish language communication and Public Health respectively.  Their work responded to the numerous capacity building requests received from community-based organizations and health departments for Spanish materials, and the Prevention Program Branch’s HIV Community Based Prevention Projects implemented in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands.  Recommendations included the need to address the growing demand for materials translated, development of standard protocol for the review of translated materials, and the need for additional bilingual personnel equipped to conduct rigorous behavioral intervention reviews.

Ms. Margaret Torres-Vázquez, who interned for the HLEC and the Prevention Research Branch under the supervision of Ms. Maria Alvarez, and Dr Jeffery Herbst, presented her results on a Systematic review on HIV Prevention Interventions conducted and evaluated in Latin America and Spanish speaking Caribbean.  The idea for this study came as a recommendation offered at CDC’s HIV Prevention Hispanics/Latinos Consultation, April 2008.  The study was based on the fact that HIV behavioral interventions for Latinos conducted in the US and Puerto Rico significantly reduce HIV-related risk behaviors (e.g., unprotected sex) and sexually transmitted infection incident, while increaseing protective behaviors (e.g., condom use).  However, there is a paucity of culturally appropriate interventions for certain high-risk Hispanic/Latino populations (e.g., MSM, migrants, female sex workers, etc.).  This project has demonstrated the potential to increase the number of culturally appropriate evidence-based behavioral interventions for Hispanics/Latinos in the United States and Puerto Rico.

For addition information on CDC’s HIV prevention programs, activities and services, please visit our website www.cdc.gov

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