World AIDS Day: Surprising finds, new HIV testing recommendations
Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008
by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.
The World Health Organization established World AIDS Day in 1988 to be observed every December 1 in order to raise awareness for the HIV/AIDS. You may be thinking it needs no more awareness, and you may be correct.
For a while, AIDS was publicized as the scourge of the earth, the plague that would bring down civilization, the scare of the century, if you will. But then modern medicine stepped in and does what it does best, make medicine for it.
Since then, there have been newer scares (the media is always looking for the freshest scare of the day to get your attention), Magic Johnson looks strong and healthy after announcing he was HIV positive over 15 years ago and it is rare to hear that a public figure has died of the disease. Many young people think of it as just another STD, if they think of it at all.
But a funny thing happened along the way.
