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HARP records 758 new HIV cases as of November 2016

MANILA, Dec. 30 (PNA) -- A total of 758 new HIV cases have been recorded by the HIV/AIDS and ART Registry of the Philippines (HARP) as of November, bringing the current total to 38,872.

Some 96 percent of the cases are male and more than half belong to the 25-34 age group, while 29 percent are in the 15-24 age group. Among the regions, the National Capital Region (NCR) logged the most number of reported cases with 301. The Calabarzon region registered 108 cases; Central Luzon, 73; Central Visayas, 72; and Davao, 47.

Of the reported cases, five were pregnant -- three from the NCR, and one each from Central Visayas and the Caraga region.

HIV is transmitted through sexual contact, needle sharing among injecting drug users, and mother-to-child transmission. A majority of the infections were obtained through Men who have Sex with Men (MSMs).

As of November, 466 patients began their antiretroviral therapy (ART). At present, a total of 17,388 persons living with HIV are undergoing ART, which is given free to HIV patients with high viral loads. It is important for patients diagnosed with HIV to take ART to protect them from opportunistic infections that could further weaken their immune system.

A total of 21 deaths were reported last November, all of them male. Some 17 were in the 25-34 age group; two in the 35-49 age group; one was 24 years old; and one was 54 years old.

A total of 1,932 deaths were reported from January 1984 to November 2016. (PNA)

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