HIV Study in Houston Show Many Have Disease and Don't Know It

Something many in the medical community long suspected has been proven out by an empirical test.  In Houston, the emergency rooms at two inner-loop clinics tried testing all patients for HIV as a routine part of their care.  They found one out of every one hundred people tested positive and many of those had no idea prior to the emergency room visit. 

Epidemiologists and HIV researchers have long believed that the general population has a higher infection rate than previously reported.  They believe almost 200,000 Americans are living with HIV and don't know it.

The routine testing removed any stigma that might have cased some people to opt out of testing and gives a much truer sample of how widespread the virus really is.  The long term goal of this pilot program is to make testing for HIV far more widespread to make sure people who are infected can get treatment early and avoid spreading the disease to others.  More from the Houston Chronicle.