Report warns against complacency as AIDS makes resurgence in Europe
Experts warn there is a resurgence of HIV in Europe with a 23% increase last year, much of it among young people. The figures, released ahead of World AIDS Day on Thursday, show a 69% increase in HIV in Britain, the largest in the EU, with 60% of cases coming from Africa. Of those diagnosed with HIV in Ireland, 43% now come from Africa.
Ireland now has 3,764 people diagnosed with HIV and 813 with AIDS, one of the lowest proportions in the EU. Last year three people died from AIDS.
But the figures, according to the United Nations, are grossly underestimated. They believe more than 2 million are living with HIV in Western Europe compared with official figures of less than 300,000.
One factor influencing the figures is the testing rates. Ireland has one of the lowest rates in Europe with only about half a percent of the population tested for the virus in 2000 compared with 9% in Austria.
The EU country with the biggest number proportionately of AIDS cases is Estonia, but it also has one of the most comprehensive testing rates.
Most HIV positive cases in Ireland are among the heterosexual population though this decreased last year while there was an increase in the number of intravenous drug users contracting the infection.
When it comes to full-blown AIDS over half the cases identified in Ireland are among Irish-born while 39.5% are from sub-Saharan Africa.
Of the 813 people living with AIDS in Ireland last year, the largest single group was drug users (295) followed by gay and bisexual men (273), while 151 were heterosexual and 29 were children who had been infected by their mothers before birth.
William Powderly, Professor of Medicine in UCD and consultant at the Mater said the continuing rise in the number of HIV cases is due to intravenous drug users and he also noted the increase in the number infected coming from sub-Saharan Africa.
Across the EU, injecting drugs is still the main source of transmission and contributes to an increasingly large share of new HIV infections.
Most of those infected are young and sexually active.
The figure causing most concern now is the increase among young people.
āI am very concerned about the resurgence of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, especially amongst young Europeans,ā said Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner Markos Kyprianou.
āWe need to remind young people of the risks linked to the epidemic, and that it is still a very real and growing threat.ā
The European Commission is planning a new campaign to raise awareness.
