AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is no longer a disease leading to inevitable death but rather a chronic one to live with for a certain period of time, sources reported on Friday.
According to the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday, approximately 11 percent, or 845 out of 7,788 AIDS patients in Korea last year, are currently aged over 60. Among those patients is one who has been living with the disease for over 28 years.
The pattern is now more common among patients than ever before.
A man in his late 50s has been going to the hospital every six month for the past 10 years since being diagnosed with AIDS.
After doctors regularly checked his condition and prescribed medicines, he has been dealing with the disease experiencing no distinctive pain at all. He now looks forwards to reaching 60.
“He was of course scared when he first heard of the news that he was infected with AIDS,” an official from the hospital said. “But by now, he has completely overcome the fear and enjoys an optimistic life.”
The center pulled up the statistics in commemoration of the World AIDS Day falling on Dec. 1.
“With the past advancement in medicines and treatment methods, AIDS is now more like a chronic disease just like diabetes and hypertension,” a professor from infectious diseases division at a Seoul hospital said. “There are also chances those with AIDS may outlive patients of diabetes or cancer of the same age groups.”
According to a report from The Joint United Nations Program on HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and AIDS (UNAIDS) published September 2012, there has been a gradual decrease in the number of AIDS patients across the world since 2005: from 2.3 million in 2005 to 1.7 million in 2011 to 1.6 million in 2012.
‘죽음의 병’으로 불리던 에이즈가 만성질환이 됐다. 젊은 시절 감염됐더라도 관리만 잘하면 특별히 아픈 데 없이 살게 된 것이다.
28일 질병관리본부가 세계 에이즈의 날(12월 1일)을 맞아 발표한 국내 에이즈 환자 현황에 따르면 지난해 기준 생존 중인 환자 7788명 중에서 60세 이상이 11%(845명)나 됐다. 28년 동안 생존하고 있는 환자도 있다.
서울의 한 대학병원 감염내과 교수는 “약이 좋아지고 치료법이 좋아지면서 에이즈는 당뇨나 고혈압과 같은 만성질환으로 봐야 한다”며 “직접 비교는 곤란하지만 암이나 당뇨에 걸린 동일 연배에 비해 더 건강하게 살 수도 있다”고 말했다.
세계적으로 에이즈 사망자는 줄어드는 추세다. 유엔에이즈계획(UNAIDS)이 지난 9월 내놓은 연례보고서를 보면 지난해 에이즈 사망자는 160만 명이다. 2005년 230만 명에서 2011년 170만 명 등 지속적인 감소세를 보이고 있는 것이다.
출처 : 코리아타임즈
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