MDVIP’s Dr. Jorge Rodriguez Talks About the Good News & Bad News on HIV/AIDS Today

The Effects of the Drugs, the New Strains & Where it is on the Rise

BOCA RATON, Fla.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--People have been lulled into thinking that HIV/AIDS is curable due to medication and that the disease is under control and not spreading. None of that is true. In fact, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS is increasing and there are serious side effects and resistance to the drugs as well as new strains of the virus that continue to be challenging.

“People have become complacent about HIV/AIDS. They see prominent celebrities who have the disease and appear healthy with the help of drugs. But that is not the true face of an HIV/AIDS patient. Serious increases in acquiring the disease are becoming the norm.”

Dr. Jorge Rodriguez, an MDVIP affiliated primary care physician and an HIV/AIDS expert specialist and researcher, says, “People have become complacent about HIV/AIDS. They see prominent celebrities who have the disease and appear healthy with the help of drugs. But that is not the true face of an HIV/AIDS patient. Serious increases in acquiring the disease are becoming the norm.”

Dr. Rodriguez presents the facts about this disease:

• HIV/AIDS is not curable. There are 27 medications available to treat the disease but they do not cure the disease.
• There are over 1 million people infected with HIV/AIDS in the United States alone.
• The epidemic continues to comprise the same number of people infected each year, but the faces of those getting infected are different
• HIV/AIDS is spreading the most rapidly in women, particularly Latina and African American women.
• The “cocktail” for the disease, has become somewhat glamorized and thought of as a quick fix for the disease, which it is not.
• Good news, bad news — HIV/AIDS patients are living longer because of the medications, however, they are more susceptible to new strains of the virus as well as heart disease, cancer and kidney failure.
• Several of the medications just don’t work on some patients.
• Serious side effects of the medications are manifesting themselves.
• Even with the medications, the quality of life is often not good.
• There is a serious lack of education directed toward the primary new targets of HIV/AIDS.
• Censorship by schools about the disease is diluting the message to young people.
• More people are living with HIV/AIDS thereby potentially infecting even more of the population.
• EVERYONE AND ANYONE CAN GET INFECTED WITH THE DISEASE.

In conclusion, Dr. Rodriguez warns, “I have seen how devastating this disease can be on human beings. And it astounds me that people, who are responsible for protecting themselves, still don’t. We need to keep the message out there about this terrible disease, and continue to educate and inform people about the HIV/AIDS virus.”

About Dr. Jorge E. Rodriquez

Jorge Rodriguez, M.D., is an MDVIP primary care physician who is board certified in internal medicine and is affiliated with Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian where he is based in Newport Beach, CA. Dr. Rodriguez has been involved with HIV/AIDS since the 80’s when the epidemic was exploding. He is an expert physician and researcher on HIV/AIDS and has been part of some of the most groundbreaking HIV research of the past two decades. He was one of the founders of the American Academy of HIV Medicine and former president of California Chapter of the American Academy of HIV Medicine, and President, Board of Directors of AIDS Services Foundation Orange County. He has received the Round-Up for Life, AIDS Services Foundation Award. Dr. Rodriguez received his doctorate in medicine from the University of Miami Medical School. He completed his internship at the University of Miami Hospitals and Clinics and his residency at Tulane University, Department of Internal Medicine. He was also a Medical Staff Fellow at Baylor University’s Division of Gastroenterology. Dr. Rodriguez frequently appears on the ABC national television talk show “The View”, GMA Health and CNN discussing a wide variety of medical and health topics. Dr. Rodriguez has been affiliated with MDVIP since March 2009.

Dr. Jorge E. Rodriguez is available for interviews.

About MDVIP, Inc.

MDVIP, Inc. is a privately-held firm founded in 2000 and headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. It is a national network of primary care physicians who practice proactive, preventive and personalized healthcare. With prevention as the cornerstone of its program, MDVIP has proven that its carefully chosen affiliated physicians provide exceptional care and achieve exceptional outcomes. These outcomes include lower hospitalization rates which yield significant cost savings to patients, employers and the healthcare system. There are currently more than 340 MDVIP-affiliated physicians providing care to over 120,000 patients throughout the country. For more information, go to www.MDVIP.com.