TACLOBAN City, Philippines—The Department of Health (DoH) in Eastern Visayas is alarmed by the increase of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome cases in the region.
Four men, aged 26 to 36, died of AIDS from January to July this year, according to Boyd Cerro, DoH-8 regional sentinel nurse.
In contrast, Cerro said that last year the health department recorded no AIDS-related death in the six provinces of Eastern Visayas—Samar, Biliran, Leyte, Southern Leyte, Northern Samar and Eastern Samar.
Based on DoH-8 monitoring, eight persons were afflicted with Human Immunodeficiency Virus, which causes AIDS, from January to August this year—more than double the four HIV cases reported in 2010.
“We are alarmed by the increasing number of HIV-AIDS cases here in the region which could be attributed mainly due to risky sexual behavior of the victims,” Cerro said.
According to Cerro, all new HIV-AIDS cases in the region contracted the virus through sex, except for one who was infected through a needle apparently used by an HIV-positive individual.
The virus can be transmitted through unsafe sex, use of contaminated needles, through infected blood in transfusion and passed on from an infected mother to her unborn infant.
From 1984 until August this year 52 cases, including eight who have died and the four new deaths this year, have been reported in Eastern Visayas.
“But there is a possibility that we have more HIV-AIDS cases in Eastern Visayas. What we know could just be a tip of the iceberg,” Cerro said.
He said the DoH has been encouraging those who have been engaging risky sexual behavior to visit the hospital and have themselves examined to determine if they are HIV-positive.
The DoH has implemented an AIDS awareness campaign to prevent the spread of the virus.
Part of their awareness campaign is to ask the public to be sympathetic to people afflicted with the virus, said Cerro. “They need sympathy and understanding. We should not discriminate them just because they have HIV-AIDS,” Cerro said.