Life expectancy increases in Africa with introduction of antiretroviral drugs

Source: BMJ Area: News Antiretroviral (ARV) drugs for HIV have had a profound effect in Africa on patient treatment and society, two new studies show.   Adult life expectancy had fallen to 49.2 years in 2003 in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, based on a rural population cohort of more than 101?000 people who were hard hit by the disease and studied by experts from the Africa Center for Health and Population Studies.   Widespread use of ARV was introduced in September 2004, and life expectancy began to rebound almost immediately. According to the researchers' study published in Science, life expectancy reached 60.5 years by 2011.   In a second study published on 20 February, the United States Institute of Medicine (IOM) has evaluated the US HIV program known as PEPFAR (President's Emergency Response for AIDS Relief). The IOM study reports that "PEPFAR has achieved-and in some cases surpassed-its initial ambitious aims. These efforts have saved and improved the lives of ...
Source: NeLM - News - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news