One is the stigma of living with a disease that is transmitted sexually or through drug abuse. The second is the stigma of being older. Because even healthy elderly people are often thought of as having one foot in the grave, Fowler says, HIV is often accepted as hastening the inevitable. Fowler cites the attitude of a high school student who attended one of her speeches. That's the big deal.
Many older people take the same risks as younger people.
But if they do engage in risky behavior, age isn't a vaccine. It isn't going to protect them from the consequences. Older women present a special set of challenges to researchers. Studies indicate that older women know far less about HIV than younger women, a lack of knowledge that may put them at risk. Moreover, the disease is increasingly cropping up among retirees.