More than 1,000 new HIV cases recorded in May

MANILA, Philippines - The number of new HIV infections documented by the Department of Health (DOH) has exceeded the 1,000 mark – the highest since the DOH established the HIV/AIDS Registry in 1984.

Data from the DOH Epidemiology Bureau showed that 1,098 new HIV cases were recorded last May. The figure is 48 percent higher than the 741 cases documented in the same month last year.

This brought to 4,388 the number of HIV cases recorded this year and 44,010 since 1984.

The DOH said 140 of the cases were full-blown AIDS at the time of reporting.

According to the DOH, the Philippines is seeing 29 new HIV cases daily, up from one case in 2008 and 26 cases last year.

Based on the report, 554 cases belong to age group 25-34; 325 cases in the 15-24 age bracket and 185 cases in the 35-49 age group. Three cases are below 15 years old. 

Eight pregnant women were diagnosed with HIV last May. Three of them came from the National Capital Region, two from Region 3 and one each from Regions 4-A, 7 and 9, the DOH said.

Metro Manila has the highest number of cases at 404, followed by Region 4-A with 155; Region 3 with 108; Region 7 with 98 and Region 11 with 60 cases. The others came from the rest of the country. 

The reported modes of transmission were sexual contact (1,068); needle sharing among injecting drug users (27) and mother-to-child transmission (3). 

Sexual contact remains the leading cause of transmission, with males who have sex with males accounting for 86 percent.

During the early years of the epidemic from 1984 to 1990, 62 percent (133 of 216 cases) were females. From 1991 to present, males comprised 93 percent (40,890 out of 44,010) of the total number of HIV/AIDS cases in the Philippines.

The DOH noted that the age group with the biggest proportion of cases has become younger: 35-49 years old from 2001 to 2005 and 25-43 years old starting from 2006 up to present.