AEGiS-AP: HIV and AIDS Cases Show Sharp Increase Across Asia: Region Saw One Million New Infections In Past Year, According to U.N. Report

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

HIV and AIDS Cases Show Sharp Increase Across Asia: Region Saw One Million New Infections In Past Year, According to U.N. Report

Associated Press - November 21, 2005

NEW DELHI û More than a million people contracted HIV infections across Asia and some 520,000 died of the disease in the past year, with the disease's spread being largely driven by drug use and unsafe sex, according to a new United Nations report.

The deaths were a sharp increase from the 420,000 reported in 2003, said the United Nations AIDS epidemic update report, released Monday.

World-wide, the global HIV epidemic continues to expand, with the estimated number of people living with the virus in 2005 passing 40 million, but prevention efforts are finally starting to pay off, the U.N. said.

Infection levels in Asia are low, but the populations of many countries are so huge that at least 8.3 million are living with the virus across the world's largest continent, including 1.1 million new infections over the past year, the report said.

"At the heart of many of Asia's [AIDS] epidemics lies the interplay between injecting drug use and unprotected sex, much of it commercial," the report said. "Yet, prevention strategies still rarely reflect the fact that such combinations of risk-taking exist in virtually every country in the region."

Ignorance about the disease also showed up among a large number of people. In India, some 42% of sex workers said they could tell whether a client had HIV from his physical appearance; in the Pakistani city of Karachi, one in five sex workers cannot recognize a condom and one-third have never heard of AIDS.

In the Philippines, more than 90% of respondents in a 2003 survey believed that the virus could be transmitted by sharing a meal with an HIV-positive person.

In India, home to an estimated 5.1 million HIV-positive people, the infections were showing signs of stabilizing in some states, but overall HIV prevalence was on the rise, the report warned.

In China, HIV cases have been detected in all of the country's 31 provinces, with the largest number reported in the south and west of the country.

The report warned that "Indonesia is on the brink of a rapidly worsening AIDS epidemic," noting that 70% of those who sought testing in Pontianak on the island of Borneo were found to be HIV-positive.

051121
AP051142

AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Elton John AIDS Foundation, National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you.

Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2005. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.

Copyright ©1980, 2005. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .