The Role of the Anaesthetist in Preventing HIV/AIDS in Developing Countries

Abstract

The 20th anniversary of the first diagnosis of HIV infection has come and gone. Since the first AIDS cases were reported in 1981 the number of cases and deaths among those with AIDS increased rapidly during the 1980s followed by substantial declines in new cases and deaths in the late 1990s. The AIDS epidemic has had a substantial impact on the health economy of many nations. At the end of 1998 more than 33.8 million people were living with HIV almost half of whom were women in their reproductive years. Over one million children are living with HIV contracted predominantly through infection from their mothers. The majority of these women and children are in the developing world where 70% of the infected and over 90% of the world’s HIV infected children live in Africa. In Haiti about 8% of adults in urban areas and 4% in rural areas are estimated to be HIV infected with prevalence reaching 13% among pregnant women in Haiti in some surveys. In Tanzania by December 1998 about 1.65 million people were living with HIV and reported cumulative AIDS cases of health facilities was 109683. The HIV epidemic has claimed 22 million lives and there are 13 million orphaned children. Today there are 40 million people living with HIV/AIDS. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is a global emergency and it calls for global commitment and action. The impact of this epidemic is the reversal of all that had been achieved in the medical field including anaesthesia. It is therefore appropriate to draw up guidelines on protection of anaesthetists and other health workers against HIV/AIDS in developing countries. (excerpt)