Published 25 November 2008, doi:10.1136/bmj.a2638
Cite this as: BMJ 2008;337:a2638

Feature

HIV and AIDS

AIDS and the irrational

¹ New York NY 10031, USA

Feature, doi:10.1136/bmj.a2566

The director of UNAIDS, Peter Piot, is stepping down in the next few weeks. In an open letter to his replacement, Helen Epstein argues that the agency should give the issue of concurrent partners high priority in combating HIV in Africa

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

In a recent survey of HIV positive South Africans, almost half believed that traditional African medicine is more effective than antiretroviral drugs.¹ This is upsetting news. The country has invested heavily in antiretroviral drugs, rapid HIV tests, CD4 cell counters, and condoms and is the site of many clinical trials into novel treatments and HIV prevention devices. In the midst of all this technology, why do irrational beliefs about AIDS persist?

The reasons are complex. AIDS advocacy groups attribute misconceptions about AIDS to sexual shame and the misguided leadership of former president Thabo Mbeki, who questioned the relation between HIV and AIDS. However, rumours about AIDS—that it is caused by witchcraft, US backed germ warfare against black people, or some foodborne poison—are common everywhere.² In Nigeria, for example, a barber recently told a reporter that three quarters of his clients bring their own clippers because of fear of AIDS—even though . . . [Full text of this article]

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    StumbleUpon    Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Articles

The invisible epidemic

Bob Roehr
BMJ 2008 337: a2566. [Extract] [Full Text]

Valuing the well connected

Nicholas A Christakis
BMJ 2008 337: a1675. [Extract] [Full Text]

The writing is on the wall for UNAIDS

Roger England
BMJ 2008 336: 1072. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

German doctors protest about firm offering fetal sex tests in early pregnancy

Annette Tuffs
BMJ 2007 334: 712. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Partner reduction is crucial for balanced "ABC" approach to HIV prevention

James D Shelton, Daniel T Halperin, Vinand Nantulya, Malcolm Potts, Helene D Gayle, and King K Holmes
BMJ 2004 328: 891-893. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

UNAIDS supports combination HIV prevention approaches which address the epidemic’s complexity

Dr Paul De Lay
bmj.com, 28 Nov 2008 [Full text]

There you go again....

Helen Epstein
bmj.com, 29 Nov 2008 [Full text]

By the way....

Helen Epstein
bmj.com, 30 Nov 2008 [Full text]

Leading by example: Jacob Zuma's post coital shower.

Richard G Fiddian-Green
bmj.com, 11 Dec 2008 [Full text]

AIDS and the irrational: after concurrency, do not forget male genital hygiene

Nigel O'Farrell
bmj.com, 11 Dec 2008 [Full text]

Known for half a century

Luc Bonneux
bmj.com, 11 Dec 2008 [Full text]

Online poll

Find out more >>