Education Packet
Youth and HIV – This packet is a compilation of several fact sheets and other resources. You may wish to customize it to meet the needs or interests of particular groups, such as event participants, providers, patients, clients, or the general public. So please feel free to distribute all or part of this packet as either a printout or PDF.
Fact Sheets, Brief Reports, Blog Items, and Infographics
HIV and Children and Adolescents (HIVinfo) – This fact sheet in question-and-answer format discusses how children and adolescents become infected with HIV, as well as new HIV diagnoses, HIV risk factors, treatment, and medication adherence challenges among children and adolescents. Also available in Spanish.
HIV in the United States by Age (CDC) – This web page links to data on HIV among different age groups, including adolescents and young adults. Information is provided on HIV risk behaviors, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) coverage, HIV incidence, HIV diagnoses, knowledge of HIV status, viral suppression rates, prevention challenges, and what CDC is doing to address HIV in different age groups.
Youth and Young Adult Clients: Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, 2020 (Health Resources and Services Administration) – This fact sheet summarizes selected demographic characteristics of youth and young adults 13 to 24 years old in the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP). About one in 30 (3.5%) of the nearly 562,000 RWHAP clients in 2020 were youth and younger adults. Among these young clients, about 5% had unstable housing, 70% lived at or below the federal poverty level, and 82% of those receiving RWHAP HIV medical care were virally suppressed. More detailed information is provided about these and other demographic characteristics. A related slide deck provides an overview of key RWHAP client data for youth and young adults in a series of graphs.
Youth and HIV: Mainstreaming a Three-Lens Approach to Youth Participation (UNAIDS) – This report outlines a three-part approach for working effectively with youth in efforts to end the HIV epidemic globally. This involves working with youth as beneficiaries, engaging with youth as partners, and supporting youth as leaders.
Youth (HIV.gov) – This topic page provides a list, from newest to oldest, of approximately 100 HIV.gov blog items focusing on youth, HIV prevention, treatment, health communication, and related issues.
The Role of Housing in Ending the HIV Epidemic (CDC) – This issue brief focuses on the importance of housing for people living with, or at risk for, HIV infection. It also summarizes data on the high rates of housing instability among several groups that are disproportionally affected by HIV, including young people.
Youth Access to Gender Affirming Care: The Federal and State Policy Landscape (Kaiser Family Foundation) – This issue brief examines the current state and federal policy landscape concerning gender affirming services for youth and the implications of restrictive state laws that, as of mid-2022, had been recently enacted in four states and were under consideration in 15 states.
AIDSVu Infographics on Youth and HIV
- One-Fifth of All U.S. HIV Diagnoses Were Among Youth
- Youth Have the Lowest Rates of Linkage to HIV Care and Viral Suppression
- Five States with the Highest Linkage to Care Rates in Young People
- Five States with the Highest Viral Suppression Rates Among Youth
- Black Americans Account for More than Half of New HIV Diagnoses Among Youth
- Young Black Women Make Up the Majority of All Young Women Living with HIV
- HIV Transmission Categories for Young Men and Women Newly Diagnosed with HIV
- HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Use Among Youth
- Patterns in PrEP Use by Age During 2021
- Adolescents and Young Adults Had the Greatest Unmet Need for PrEP During 2021
- Social Determinants of Health and Youth with HIV
HIV Surveillance Reports and Data Analyses
Diagnoses of HIV Infection in the United States and Dependent Areas, 2020 (CDC) – This surveillance report includes detailed information about new HIV diagnoses, prevalence, and deaths among adolescents and young adults, as well as persons in other age categories. Breakdowns are also provided by gender, race/ethnicity, transmission category, and geographic region. The report includes a series of Special Focus Profiles highlighting six populations of particular interest to HIV prevention programs in state and local health departments, including adolescents and young adults. In addition, Tables 8a, 8b, 19a, and 19b focus specifically on HIV diagnoses and prevalence among adolescents and young adults.
Estimated HIV Incidence and Prevalence in the United States, 2015-2019 (CDC) – This report provides estimates of the number of new HIV infections and the total number of persons living with HIV during each year from 2015 through 2019. It begins with a commentary section that summarizes highlights of the report, followed by tables that present data on HIV incidence and prevalence among adults and adolescents, with breakdowns by age, sex at birth, race/ethnicity, transmission category, and region of residence. The age data include statistics for youth between the ages of 13 and 24 years old. An appendix focuses on the estimated incidence and prevalence of HIV infection among adults and adolescents living in Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) Phase 1 jurisdictions.
Monitoring Selected National HIV Prevention and Care Objectives by Using HIV Surveillance Data United States and 6 Dependent Areas, 2020 (CDC) – This report presents the results of focused analyses of U.S. HIV surveillance data to measure progress toward ending the HIV epidemic. It includes information on the stage of HIV disease at the time of diagnosis, linkage to HIV medical care, viral suppression, prevalence-based HIV care continuum, HIV deaths and survival, PrEP use, and perinatal HIV infections. The report also includes a series of Special Focus Profiles highlighting six populations of particular interest to HIV prevention programs in state and local health departments, including young persons. For some measures, data are broken down by age, as well as gender, race/ethnicity, transmission category, and area of residence.
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance – United States, 2019. The YRBS tracks the prevalence of health-related behaviors that may impact the leading causes of death and disability among youth and adults. These include, among many others, HIV testing; behaviors that may increase the risk of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV; and alcohol and other drug use. The 2019 report, which includes breakdowns by sexual identity, often found significant differences in the prevalence of risk behaviors between youth who identify as heterosexual, and those who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or unsure of their identity.
HIV Surveillance – Adolescents and Young Adults 2018 (preliminary) (CDC) – This slide set provides extensive information about HIV and AIDS diagnoses and trends for two age groups: 13 to 19 years and 20 to 24 years. The data generally cover the period 2010 to 2017, and include breakdowns by gender, race/ethnicity, transmission category, and geographic area.
Estimated HIV Incidence and Prevalence in the United States, 2010-2019 (CDC) – This slide set summarizes trends in HIV incidence during the 2010s, with breakdowns by age, sex, race/ethnicity, transmission category, and region. Data for 2019 is also provided on knowledge of HIV status, as well as HIV prevalence in the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
HIV Infection, Stage 3 (AIDS), 2020 (CDC) – This slide set summarizes trends in AIDS diagnoses and deaths from 1985 to 2020, with breakdowns by age, sex, race/ethnicity, transmission category, and region. Data on cumulative AIDS diagnoses and deaths through 2020, and AIDS data for Metropolitan Statistical Areas are also provided.
Selected Resources from AIDS Education and Training Centers (AETCs)
National HIV Curriculum: HIV in Adolescents and Young Adults (AIDS Education and Training Center, University of Washington, and other partners, updated 2020) – This is the second lesson in the Curriculum’s Key Populations module. It includes detailed information on many topics, including:
- Epidemiology of HIV in adolescents and young adults
- Testing, linkage to care, and retention in care
- Clinical and laboratory monitoring
- Antiretroviral therapy for adolescents with HIV
- Adherence to antiretroviral therapy
- PrEP for adolescents
- Immunizations for adolescents with HIV
- Adolescent sexuality, gender, and reproductive health
- Special considerations for youth with perinatal HIV
- Transitioning to adult care
Mental Health and HIV Webinar Series Part 4: Trauma and Stressor-Related Disorders (New England AETC, June 2022) – This webinar provides information about the pervasiveness of trauma among people with HIV and the principles of care necessary to avoid doing harm. The diagnosis and treatment of specific trauma disorders, including PTSD, are also discussed.
Mental Health and HIV Webinar Series Part 3: Anxiety Disorders (New England AETC, May 2022) – This webinar provides information about how to appropriately diagnose and effectively treat the most common anxiety disorders in primary care.
Mental Health and HIV Webinar Series Part 2: Pharmacotherapy for Depression (New England AETC, May 2022) – This webinar provides information about the most commonly prescribed antidepressants, including their impact on the management of HIV. Strategies for adjusting, switching, or augmenting antidepressant medications are also discussed.
Mental Health and HIV Webinar Series Part 1: Addressing Depression in People with HIV (New England AETC, May 2022) – This webinar describes the importance of addressing depression in people with HIV, and evidence-based approaches for diagnosing and treating depressive illnesses. There is also a discussion about how treating depression impacts both mental health and HIV outcomes.
Chemsex: Essentials for Treating the Addictive Fusion of Drugs and Sex (New England AETC, April 2022) – This seminar reviews the clinical presentation and treatment of co-occurring drug use (particularly amphetamines) and sexual behavior. Biopsychosocial risk factors are reviewed, along with the specific impact of various drugs on sexual functioning.
Myth-Busting HCV Treatment: Integrated Models of HCV Care Delivery (New England AETC, November 2021) – This part of the “Myth-Busting HCV Treatment” series describes the process of care and patient outcomes in a practice serving young injection drug users with integrated HCV treatment services and opioid use disorder services.
Connect to Cure – A Care Innovation Project (New England AETC, October 2021) – This seminar describes a multidisciplinary team’s experience providing innovative care for people at risk of drug and sex-related harms.
Managing Sexual Health in Adolescents (New England AETC, June 2021) – In this webinar, presenters discuss a status-neutral approach for addressing sexual health in adolescents and provide information about preventing and addressing sexually transmitted infections and HIV in adolescents.
Adapting HIV Service for Youth During COVID-19 and Beyond (Pacific AETC, March 2021) – This webinar examines the landscape for youth engagement in HIV care services, and identifies the key elements of a client/patient-centered approach in providing HIV services to youth.
Selected Recent Reports from CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
Each of these recent reports includes a data on, or a discussion of, HIV testing, prevention, care, or other related health issues for young people.
HIV Services and Outcomes During the COVID-19 Pandemic – United States, 2019-2021
The contents listed on this page are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, the New England AIDS Education and Training Center.