HIV Cases Rising In Florida Especially Among Young Adults

Despite the active movements in controlling the rise of HIV and AIDS cases and even after decades of medical advances, there is a resurgence of the said illness in Florida. Rolling Out released the list of top 25 cities with high HIV and AIDS rate, and Miami, Fla. tops the list. Among the cities in Florida who made it on the list were Jacksonville, Orlando, Lakeland, Tampa-St Petersburg-Clearwater and Cape Coral-Fort Myers. 

According to CBS News, the rise of HIV cases in the Sunshine State is more prominent among adolescents and young adults. Jahn Cabeza, 26, among the HIV-positive individuals, discovered his case two years ago. He admitted that he used to cry and wake up with swollen eyes after learning about his condition.  The report suggests that Cabeza's case is among the alarming trend.

Dr. Michael Wohlfeiler, Chief of Medicine for the Aids Healthcare Foundation, revealed that men between the ages 13 and 24 years old make up the fastest growing group infected with AIDS.

Aside from disclosing the most vulnerable age bracket, Wohlfeiler also described the change of attitude on his clients on their first and last visit. "A young person comes in for his or her first visit with me -- The attitude at the beginning of the visit is very nonchalant, like this is not a big deal," Wohlfeiler said. "By the end of the visit, often the attitude has changed."

Moreover, there is also an increasing infection rate among men who are 50 years old and older. "Part of the reason we are seeing new infections in older group of men who have sex with men is what I would actually term a kind of 'gay mid-life crisis,' where they were HIV negative for years and years, getting tested regularly and then they went through a period as they were facing middle age of becoming more sexually active, " Wohlfeiler explained.

As stressed by health officials stressed, 60 percent of teens and young adults, who are infected with HIV, are unaware of their conditions and are unconsciously spreading the disease.

The number of reported HIV cases in Florida has risen by 23 percent this year. It is the biggest increase in the state's continuous upward trend since 2012 after several years of decreases, SunSentinel has learned.  The report stressed that there were  4,512 new HIV cases in 2012 for the said state, this rate increased by 18 percent in 2013 and 11 percent in 2014.

To alleviate the problem, the AIDS Foundation is trying to be more aggressive in their campaign on reminding the people the benefits of safe sex to avoid the dreaded disease.