Assessing the spatial-temporal clustering of HIV prevalence among adolescents and young adults across countries around the world

Abstract To date, HIV infection among adolescents and young adults remains a challenging public health issue, especially for countries located in Sub-Saharan Africa but no empirical research known to date has provided a spatial- temporal cluster analyses to assess trends in HIV prevalence among this population. This study attempts fill in the gaps in research by examining how the prevalence of adolescents and young adults aged 15–24 living with HIV are clustered together and estimating the number of individuals infected with HIV and the effectiveness of disease control initiatives. The empirical work of this study is based on the UNAIDS estimates downloaded from the World Bank DataBank and data obtained from the United States Central Intelligence Agency. Findings suggest that trends in HIV prevalence among adolescents and young adults differed by region and the prevalence of HIV infection among these individuals will not surge but will somewhat fluctuate over time. Attempt to end AIDS as a public health threat by year 2030 can remain a challenge if the current antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage, population growth rates, and AIDS-related death rates were to continue into the next decade.