A new, interactive map was rolled out this week by the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University that shows in detail like never before where the most cases of AIDS are located in the U.S. Not surprisingly, the South, including Georgia, is one of the areas hardest hit.

The map, released June 1, is part of the Emory University's recognition of the 30th anniversary of AIDS on June 5. Click here to see the AIDSVu map and scroll over different states, and counties, to see the profile of HIV/AIDS in each jurisdiction.

“AIDSVu is an important new public health tool that makes data on the geography of HIV in the United States available to anyone with an Internet connection,” said Dr. James Curran, Dean of the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, in a statement.

“AIDSVu shows us that every area of the country is affected by HIV, and we hope that AIDSVu helps individuals better understand HIV in their communities and take charge of their health," he added.

AIDSVu is also the "first online tool to link state and county-level HIV prevalence data with local HIV testing sites, information about state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs and estimates of the percentage of HIV diagnoses that are made late in the course of the disease. AIDSVu will be updated on an ongoing basis as new data and information become available," according to a press release from the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory.

According to Emory University, "The state and county-level data displayed on AIDSVu were obtained from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and compiled by researchers at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University. The project is guided by a Technical Advisory Group with representatives from federal agencies, state health departments and non-governmental organizations working in HIV prevention, care and research. Financial support for AIDSVu was provided to Emory University by Gilead Sciences, Inc."

The profile of Georgia, according to the map, shows numbers from 2008, the most recent numbers available:

• The estimated population of Georgia was 9,685,744 in 2008.

• In 2008, there were 33,282 adults/adolescents in Georgia living with an HIV infection diagnosis.

• The estimated percent of adults/adolescents diagnosed with AIDS within 12 months of initial HIV infection diagnosis in 2008 was 32.9 percent.

• In 2008, 15 percent of the population of Georgia lived below the federal poverty line.

• There are currently 1520 people on Georgia's ADAP (AIDS Drug Assistance Program) waiting list as of May 20, 2011.

Also as part of the profile of Georgia, the map shows      

• Rate ratio of black to white males living with an HIV infection diagnosis: 5.1 : 1

• Rate ratio of Hispanic to white males living with an HIV infection diagnosis: 1.2 : 1

• Rate ratio of black to white females living with an HIV infection diagnosis: 12.8 : 1

• Rate ratio of Hispanic to white females living with an HIV infection diagnosis: 3.1 : 1

Also, Georgia had the seventh highest number of AIDS cases in the United States and the eighth highest rate of AIDS cases per 100,000 people in 2004.

Gay and bisexual men still account for the highest number of cases.