The global rate of new HIV infections among adults and children has fallen by 33 percent since 2001, according to a new report that touts major progress against HIV transmission to kids.
Among children specifically, there were 260,000 new infections as of 2012, which is a 52 percent decrease since 2001. Sixty-two percent of pregnant women were provided antiretroviral drugs, which greatly helps in preventing the transmission of the virus to their unborn children. AIDS-related deaths have also dropped 30 percent since 2005, when the highest mortality rates were recorded.
The statistics were published by UNAIDS in a global report on the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Still, the UNAIDS report revealed that an estimated 35.3 million people were living with HIV around the world in 2012. About 2.3 million got infected that year, and 1.6 million people died due to AIDS-related illnesses