Group - AIDS pandemic

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has led to the deaths of more than 25 million people since it was first recognized in 1981, making it one of the most destructive diseases in recorded history. Despite recent improved access to antiretroviral treatment and care in many regions of the world, in 2007 the AIDS pandemic killed an estimated 2.1 million people, including 330,000 children. In 2007, an estimated 33.2 million people lived with the disease worldwide, with an estimated 2.5 million people newly infected in 2007. This has been attributed[who ] to lack of access to antiretroviral treatment in huge areas such as the continent of Africa, where (according to French researcher Olivier Schwarz), less than 10 percent of infected are reported to have access to it. The pandemic is not homogeneous within regions, with some countries more afflicted than others. Even at the country level, there are wide variations in infection levels between different areas. The number of people infected with HIV continues to rise in most parts of the world, despite the implementation of prevention strategies, Sub-Saharan Africa being by far the worst-affected region, with an estimated 22.5 million at the end of 2007, 68% of the global total. South & South East Asia have an estimated 12% of the global total. The origin of HIV/AIDS has been elucidated by studies of the HIV genome, which indicate that the most common type of HIV (HIV-1) originated in chimpanzees. Source: UNAIDS 2007 estimates. The ranges define the boundaries within which the actual numbers lie, based on the best available information.