Latin America & the Carribean

The AIDS Pandemic and Children in Latin America and the Caribbean

2.1 million persons are living with HIV/AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean.
With an average HIV prevalence of 2.3percent, the Caribbean is the region of the world with the second highest prevalence after Sub-Saharan Africa.
In 2004 alone, 240,000 people in Latin America became newly infected and 53,000 others  living in the Caribbean acquired HIV.
This means that every hour of every day, 33 people are infected with the virus that causes AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Deaths due to AIDS:

 AIDS is presently the leading cause of death among Caribbean men and women aged 15-44.  In this region, 36,000 persons died due to     AIDS in 2004.
 In 2004 alone, 95,000 people in Latin America died from illnesses related to AIDS.
 This translates into 15 AIDS-related deaths every hour of every day in Latin America and the Caribbean.

HIV infection among children and young people:

Approximately 740,000 young people between 15 and 24 years of age are living with HIV/AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The number of female adolescents living with HIV/AIDS in many countries in the Caribbean is up to five times higher than the number of males in the same age group.
Nearly 50,000 children under the age of 15 are living with HIV/AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Mother-to-child transmission:

The overwhelming majority of children under 15 who are HIV-positive were infected by HIV positive mothers during pregnancy, labour, delivery or breastfeeding.  But less than 30 percent of pregnant women are offered services to stop the spread of HIV to their babies in the Latin American and Caribbean region.
Each year in the Caribbean, there are now approximately 3,000 boys and girls born to mothers who are HIV positive.
Without preventive interventions, roughly one third of infants born to HIV-positive mothers will acquire the virus.
Orphans and vulnerable children:

It is estimated that some 752,000 children have lost one or both parents to the epidemic throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.