HIV/AIDS cases on rise in Mahoning, Trumbull

YOUNGSTOWN — Local and state health officials say the casual attitude toward unprotected sex for this generation of young adults and teens could cause it to learn an extremely hard lesson: that HIV/AIDS is still a killer.

Since the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in the early 2000s that the number of AIDS deaths was leveling out, there seems to be less fear that HIV/AIDS is real, said Youngstown Health Commissioner Neil Altman.

New medicines and treatments and drug combinations tend to prolong the lives of those who are infected with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), which causes AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome).

Some view this as an opportunity to become complacent and engage in high-risk sexual behavior, Altman said.

As a result, the number of HIV/AIDS cases is again on the rise in two counties, predominantly in the 15- to mid-40s age range, Altman said.

The number of reported new HIV cases in Mahoning County was 13 in 2004, 16 in 2005 and 25 in 2006. In Trumbull County, the number rose from five cases in 2004 and 2005 to 14 last year.

The numbers of cases in Columbiana County, however, decreased from three in 2004 to none and one in 2005 and 2006, respectively, said Nicole Ware-Winford, disease intervention specialist for the city health district.

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