HIV cases shoot up, DOH alarmed

THE number of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) cases in the country has increased by 65 percent mainly because of unsafe sex practices,the Department of Heath (DOH) said on Thursday.

The Health department’s National Epidemiology Center has recorded at least 253 new HIV cases, a 65-percent increase from the 153 reported cases last year.

Of the new cases, 53 percent—135 cases—were recorded in Metro Manila.

Of that number, 16 were overseas Filipino workers, with five of them female. All contracted the virus through sexual contact. Five of the victims now have full-blown acquired immune deficiency syndrome or AIDS. This brings the number of AIDS cases in the country to 936.

From January to September, the DOH confirmed 1,669 HIV cases. Since 1984, 339 AIDS victims have died, 15 of them this year.

The Health department said that the rate of increase was alarming since it showed that four to five new cases were reported everyday.

It added that the 20 to 29-year-old age group had the most number of cases. This group made up 57 percent of the recorded cases for September. Data also showed that 95 percent of the victims were male.

Aside from sexual contact, the victims acquired the virus through needle sharing and blood transfusion.

The DOH admitted that for this year, at least 674 blood units were confirmed to be positive for HIV. The contaminated blood was sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine.

Also in September, out of 48 screened HIV reactive blood units referred for HIV confirmation, 10 units were positive for HIV.

The Health department had warned that HIV-AIDS cases would balloon to 45,000 in 2015 because of continued unsafe sex practices of Filipinos.

The agency said that avoiding illicit sex was one way of avoiding HIV. –JOVEE MARIE N. DELA CRUZ REPORTER, Manila Times