Overview
HIV/AIDS and adolescent health concerns the epidemiology, prevention, care, and psychosocial dimensions of human immunodeficiency virus infection among young people, a group whose developmental stage, behaviour, and access to services create distinctive vulnerabilities. Adolescents face elevated risk through limited knowledge, restricted access to preventive services, and barriers to comprehensive sexual education, making awareness and attitudes toward counselling and testing central to prevention. Research in school and community settings examines the determinants of protective behaviour, including psychosocial predictors of sexual abstinence and the relationship between HIV awareness and willingness to undergo premarital or routine HIV counselling and testing. Prevention also depends on the availability and correct use of biomedical tools such as antiretroviral pre-exposure prophylaxis, whose uptake is shaped by healthcare-worker knowledge and practice and by adherence among at-risk groups. Care of HIV-positive adolescents raises specific challenges, including age-appropriate disclosure of sero-positive status by health providers and the management of sociocultural barriers affecting orphaned and vulnerable young people. Comorbidity and long-term health are further considerations, as people living with HIV require screening for risks such as ischaemic heart disease. By integrating behavioural prevention, education, testing, prophylaxis, disclosure, and continuity of care, this field aims to reduce adolescent vulnerability to HIV, improve treatment adherence, and support the physical, psychological, and social well-being of young people affected by the epidemic.
Research published in this journal
8 peer-reviewed articles, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.
How this research is being cited
The 8 articles above have been cited 24 times in the scholarly literature. Citation data via OpenAlex and Crossref, updated Jun 2026.
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2026 · Discover Public Health
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2026 · Discover Public Health
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2026 · BMC Public Health
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Knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP): a systematic review2025 · Journal of HIV/AIDS & Social Services
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Laoungang Ange Maïn-Ndeiang et al. · 2025 · Journal of Sexual Medicine
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2025 · The Journal of Sexual Medicine
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2025 · International Journal of Health Promotion and Education
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2024 · Scientific Reports
A sample of recent works citing this journal's research on HIV/AIDS and Adolescent Health, linking to each citing work.