HAPPY days! Although HIV is still at large, it's on the back foot.
Figures released this week by the United Nations AIDS agency show that the annual number of new HIV infections in children has more than halved since 2001, from 550,000 to 260,000.
New infections overall have tumbled by a third over the same period. Death rates are falling too, from a peak of 2.3 million in 2005 to 1.6 million last year.
"Many of the reductions are related to increases in the availability of antiretroviral therapy," says Peter Ghys, at UNAIDS. Of everyone eligible for treatment globally, 61 per cent are now receiving ART – almost 10 million people in total.
Ghys says other key factors include scaled-up programmes to prevent mothers with HIV passing the virus to their babies, and the increase of male circumcision programmes in Africa.
Recent changes to eligibility rules mean an additional 10 million can now receive ART, raising hopes of further success.
This article appeared in print under the headline "HIV running scared"
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