Stigma and Discrimination: Threats to Living Positively with Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

Antiretroviral therapy and care advances have resulted in people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) living longer and enjoying a higher level of physical well-being. Despite such advances, individuals with HIV continue to confront challenges to living positively, including facing the secondary epidemic of stigma and discrimination. Following is a historical overview of the concept of stigma and an exploration of the causes and consequences of multilevel stigma for individuals with HIV.

"Out of All of this Mess, I Got a Blessing": Perceptions and Experiences of Reproduction and Motherhood in African American Women Living With HIV.

HIV disproportionately impacts African American women of childbearing age residing in the southern United States. Antiretroviral therapy has increased the quantity and quality of life for people living with HIV and produced viable and safe reproduction possibilities for women living with HIV. However, little is known about reproductive decision-making processes for African American women living with HIV.

A quantitative study of factors influencing quality of life in rural Mexican women diagnosed with HIV.

This quantitative study explored the level of Quality of Life (QoL) in indigenous Mexican women and identified psychosocial factors that significantly influenced their QoL, using face-to-face interviews with 101 women accessing care in an HIV clinic in Oaxaca, Mexico. Variables included demographic characteristics, levels of depression, coping style, family functioning, HIV-related beliefs, and QoL. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze participant characteristics, and women's scores on data collection instruments.

Correction: Diagnostic Potential of the NMDA Receptor Peptide Assay for Acute Ischemic Stroke.

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Exploration of commonalities and variations in health related beliefs across four Latino subgroups using focus group methodology: implications in care for Latinos with type 2 diabetes.

Latinos, now the largest U.S. ethnic minority, have a high risk for type 2 diabetes.

Oaxacan women with HIV/AIDS: resiliency in the face of poverty, stigma, and social isolation.

Issues: HIV infection among Mexican women continues to increase. The purpose of the authors in this study was to explore the psychosocial issues of HIV-infected Mexican women's lives, and to support a request from the Mexican federal government for data to support the need for funding for the psychological care of these women.

Methods: A Spanish-speaking researcher conducted private, in-depth, face-to-face interviews with 21 women receiving health services at the HIV/AIDS clinic, COESIDA, near Oaxaca City, Mexico.

Diagnostic potential of the NMDA receptor peptide assay for acute ischemic stroke.

Background: The acute assessment of patients with suspected ischemic stroke remains challenging. The use of brain biomarker assays may improve the early diagnosis of ischemic stroke. The main goal of the study was to evaluate whether the NR2 peptide, a product of the proteolytic degradation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, can differentiate acute ischemic stroke (IS) from stroke mimics and persons with vascular risk factors/healthy controls.

Making decisions: the process of HIV disclosure for rural African American men.

The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the process of HIV disclosure for rural African American men-a population disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. Forty men were interviewed about their experience of making an HIV disclosure. Grounded theory methodology guided data collection and analysis.

Reasons for HIV disclosure and non-disclosure: an exploratory study of rural African American men.

Disclosure of one's HIV status to others is an important decision. There are benefits and risks to be considered. Also decisions must be made about the recipients of the disclosure.

Understanding and responding to HIV/AIDS stigma and disclosure: an international challenge for mental health nurses.

Stigma and discrimination are challenges in the care and treatment of persons with HIV infection worldwide. Fear of negative social consequences often causes persons with HIV/AIDS to keep their infection secret, resulting in negative psychological and physical outcomes and continued spread of the disease. Mental health nurses have a unique opportunity to influence the trajectory of HIV/AIDS though counseling and interventions that address HIV/AIDS stigma with clients, communities, and society.

Men seeking sex on an intergenerational gay Internet website: an exploratory study.

Objective: This study explored the characteristics and sexual behaviors reported by men who have sex with men (MSM) seeking sex on an intergenerational website. Of special interest was to determine whether and how seeking sex on the Internet contributed to risky sex behaviors.

Methods: This descriptive exploratory study extracted data from a stratified random sample of 1,020 profiles posted by men seeking sex on a gay intergenerational website.

HIV infection returning to Mexico with migrant workers: an exploratory study.

Men migrating to the United States are at high risk of acquiring HIV and spreading it to their wives and children in Mexico. Yet there is limited understanding of this phenomenon from the perspective of these men and their wives. This exploratory study used face-to-face interviews to gain insight into factors influencing the increased risk of Mexican men migrating to the United States for contracting HIV as well as the consequences of their infections on returning to Mexico.

A model of HIV disclosure: disclosure and types of social relationships.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess perceptions of HIV positive (+) persons regarding disclosure of their serostatus to others with the goal of developing a model of HIV disclosure that could be used by healthcare providers (HCPs) in HIV prevention.

Data Sources: Data were collected through 13 focus groups from 104 HIV+ participants. The groups were formed based on three HIV risk exposure categories--men who have sex with men, high-risk heterosexuals, and substance users.

Validating the utility of the Spanish version of the American Diabetes Association Risk Test.

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) Risk Test, often used for decisions to blood glucose screen or not, lacks studies reporting the reliability or validity for the Spanish version of the tool. The objective of this study is to further validate the utility of the Spanish version of the ADA's Risk Test for Latino Populations. A convenience sample of 316 Latinos participated in this study.

Religion, relationships and mental health in midlife women following acute myocardial infarction.

Little is known about coping in women following an acute myocardial infarction (AMI). In midlife, women have worse outcomes than men following AMI. Innovative interventions need to be developed that respond to these women's unique recovery needs.

Sleep quality and health-related quality of life in HIV-infected African-American women of childbearing age.

A descriptive, correlational design was used to examine the associations of sleep quality and stage of illness with health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in HIV-infected African-American women. Participants were recruited from 12 health clinics and AIDS service organizations (ASO) in Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. The sample consisted of 144 African-American women who ranged in age from 20 to 48 years (m = 34.