HIV surge alarms agency
Wednesday November 26th, 2008
The number of people in Britain infected with HIV has reached record levels, according to new figures, published yesterday.
The Health Protection Agency released figures suggesting that there are record numbers of people living with HIV in Britain - approximately 77,400 in 2007 compared with 73,000 in 2006.
According to the HPA, as many as 28 per cent of these do not know they are infected.
The HPA warned that heterosexual and gay infection rates are continuing to rise.
Nearly 1,000 people were infected through heterosexual contact in 2007 - nearly twice the 540 diagnoses made in 2003.
And 3,160 gay men tested positive for the disease in 2007.
Agency officials called for wider availability of testing in order to diagnose HIV infections earlier.
Under new guidelines doctors in high risk areas are being urged to offer HIV to all new patients aged between 15 and 59.
Dr Valerie Delpech, of the agency, said: "It is very worrying that so many people remain unaware of their HIV status. Wider HIV testing in high prevalence areas of the UK is urgently needed to reduce the number of undiagnosed infections."
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