BIG READ | Looming ‘silver tsunami’ set to strain health system
South Africa is facing a 'silver tsunami' as the population of people living with HIV ages, leading to increased demand for chronic disease management. Experts warn that HIV accelerates the aging process, complicating the treatment of conditions like diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Why it matters
The intersection of aging populations and chronic viral management presents a significant challenge for healthcare systems in developing nations.
When Sibongile Tshabalala was diagnosed with HIV in 2000, then-president Thabo Mbeki’s Aids denialism was at its peak and activists were locked in battle with his administration over its refusal to provide life-saving treatment.
The focus was on survival. No-one was thinking about what it might mean to grow old with HIV, says Tshabalala, now the chair of the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC).
But today, thanks to the wide-scale provision of free treatment, South Africa has a large and steadily growing HIV population living into middle age and beyond. By 2040, more than half the people living with HIV in South Africa will be at least 50 years old, up from just 30% in 2025, according to a recent report in The Lancet.
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