On Monday, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a report presenting statistics on women’s health worldwide. The report, entitled “Women and Health: Today’s Evidence Tomorrow’s Agenda”, was launched from WHO’s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

Included below are data on the 15.5 million women living with HIV/AIDS.

HIV is the leading cause of death and disease in women during their reproductive years, from 15 to 44 years of age. Incidence rates have increased since the 1990s, especially in countries of sub-Saharan Africa.

Female sex workers, injecting drug users, and partners of infected males make up a majority of those infected. Infection is acquired mainly through heterosexual transmission, the report says.

Women are especially susceptible to HIV infection for a combination of biological and social factors. During unprotected sexual intercourse with an infected partner, women are more likely than men to acquire the virus. This is due to microabrasions, or small cuts, that form along the vaginal canal and give the virus access to the bloodstream.

This biological risk is compounded in cultures in which women are marginalized. As a result, they lack access to education, decision-making positions, and the ability to make a sufficient income, which limits their authority and power in society.

In many cases, women’s knowledge about HIV is very limited. For instance, fewer young women than young men are aware that condoms can protect against HIV, according to a United Nations program on HIV/AIDS report.

In other instances, women are unable to negotiate safe sex, particularly those who are driven into sex work by economic necessity. Recent developments in anti-HIV technology can potentially allow women to protect themselves even in situations in which they are unable to negotiate condom use.

For example, an AIDS Beacon article published in August presented findings on an experimental gel that women could apply prior to sexual intercourse to protect themselves against HIV. This microbicide gel is designed to block HIV infection by turning semi-solid in the presence of semen, which then traps the viruses and prevents them from entering the body.

The report also finds that more HIV-positive women are getting treatment. In 2008, 45 percent of infected women and only 37 percent of infected men received antiretroviral drugs.

Additionally, prevention of mother-to-child transmission has increased from 10 percent in 2004 to 45 percent in 2008.

Despite these advances, many women throughout the world still lack access to treatment and are vulnerable to acquiring infection. WHO director-general Dr. Margaret Chan has called for “urgent action” to improve the health and lives of women of all ages around the world.

For more information, please read the report (pdf) or the news release on the WHO Web site.