509 new HIV cases in August, up by 33%; male transmission high – DOH

MANILA, Philippines—The number of cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) jumped by 33 percent in August compared to the same period in 2013, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Wednesday.

Based on the Philippine HIV and AIDS Registry, there were 509 new HIV cases, with 82 percent of them coming from Metro Manila, Calabarzon, Central Visayas, Central Luzon and Davao Region. It also said that 92 percent of the cases were still asymptomatic at the time of the reporting.

The registry noted that the predominant type of transmission was male having sex with male, accounting for 87 percent of the cases. Other modes of transmission were sexual contact, accounting for 473 cases; needle sharing among drug users, 34 cases and mother-to-child transmission, two cases.

“Most of the cases were male. The median age was 27 years (age range: 1-59 years). The 20-29-year (58 percent) age group had the most number of cases,” said the DOH.

Of the 3,908-HIV-positive cases that were reported since January this year, 351 were AIDS cases, it added.

As of August, roughly 7,380 people living with HIV— both adults and pediatric patients —were enrolled and accessing anti-retroviral drugs in the 19 treatment hubs in the country.

The Research Institute for Tropical Medicine also confirmed that 285 blood units for the same month were found to be positive for HIV. “There is no available data yet on the total number of blood units donated,” said the report.

“These are confirmed positive blood units, not blood doors. One donor can donate more than one blood unit,” it also noted.

The human-immuno deficiency virus or HIV leads to AIDS or the acquired immune deficiency syndrome, a condition in which the body’s immune systems are attacked and damaged by the virus, ultimately leading to death.

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