Researchers and medical professionals are becoming increasingly concerned about advanced HIV infections, which develops in untreated HIV-positive individuals.
The National Empowerment Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Kenya (NEPHAK) claims that non-communicable diseases and AIDS-related fatalities have been mistakenly counted together.
The country’s battle against HIV/AIDS has made significant progress in recent years, but there are still obstacles to overcome. For example, some HIV-positive individuals are arriving at hospitals late for testing, and others are quitting because of stigma and medication fatigue.
Nelson Otwoma, the head of NEPHAK, states that “when we talk about advanced HIV, we are talking about trends that we used to see a long time coming back the fact that we have free medication.”
“We think they can be prevented. We had 18,000 AIDS-related deaths in 2022,” says Dr. Lazarus Momanyi, an advisor to the National AIDS and STI Control Programme (NASCOP).
Since their immune systems are still developing, all children under five are regarded as having advanced HIV disease, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Healthcare facilities nationwide are being urged by medical professionals to inquire about the admission status of each patient, as some patients neglect to declare their drug usage while in the hospital.
Dr. Momanyi continues, “We have observed late diagnosis, particularly in men.”
The Ministry of Health reports that TB infection rates in this community of people are 25%, making it the top cause of mortality for individuals living with HIV.
“We have done a lot in TB but we still see people coming out with coughs. What we are doing is that if we screen and find out you don’t have TB, we put you under TB preventive therapy to prevent you,” Momanyi explains.
