title: Interactions between HIV/AIDS and the environment: toward a syndemic framework.
abstract: Although the social, economic, and political dimensions of the HIV/AIDS epidemic have been studied in considerable depth, the relationship between HIV/AIDS and its environmental causes and consequences remains largely unexplored. We reviewed the evidence of interactions between ecosystem health and the HIV/AIDS pandemic. We hypothesized a syndemic between environmental degradation and HIV/AIDS; they exhibit bidirectional, self-reinforcing interactions. We have presented a syndemic framework detailing multiple synergistic relationships. This framework hinges on the vulnerability of populations as the linchpin between the pandemic and environmental health. A coherent research and practice agenda for addressing the syndemic that focuses on the 2 issues as not only concurrent but also intertwined phenomena is urgently needed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA. atalman@gmail.com
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Talman
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bolton
authors.forename: Judd L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Walson
mesh_terms: D000349:Africa; D000383:Agriculture / Q000191:economics; D057231:Climate Change; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D004777:Environment; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D000078329:Workforce