HIV is 'hidden and growing epidemic' in RP

With new cases of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infections rising by one-third this year, the Philippines is one of the countries where a “hidden and growing epidemic" is imminent, the United Nations warned on the occasion of World AIDS Day on Tuesday. The country is considered a “low prevalence country" for the ailment, with registered cases at less than 0.1 percent of the total population of 90 million. From January to October this year, however, 629 new HIV-positive cases have been recorded in the Philippines, a 36 per cent increase from the same period in 2008, the UN said. "Noting the increasing trend in new HIV infections in the Philippines, sustained and effective national and local responses are at the core of priority interventions," the UN said in a statement. “The low prevalence situation has seemingly shifted to a ‘hidden and growing’ epidemic," the UN added. In Manila, over a thousand students from nine schools and members of organizations pushing for AIDS awareness held a parade in commemoration of World Aids Day. They walked from Boni Avenue to the Mandaluyong Gym as part of a program called "Kaisa Ako Laban sa AIDS and HIV," a report over QTV's Balitanghali said. As of September this year, the Department of Health (DOH) has listed more than 800 full-blown AIDS cases, according to the television report. A total of 318 Filipinos have died from AIDS, the last stage of HIV infection, in the past 25 years. One patient died of AIDS this year, according to DOH. The first HIV case was reported in the country in 1984. As of October 2009, the National Epidemiology Center of the DOH has recorded 4,218 cases of HIV-positive Filipinos. The government has established a center at the San Lazaro hospital in Manila to provide medical care and counseling for Filipinos at risk from the deadly virus. The UN called on the government, which has legislated the Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act of 1998 to protect persons living with HIV/AIDS against discrimination and abuse, to pursue a broad-based approach in addressing the problem. More people live with HIV than die from AIDS In a statement on Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the world is seeing signs of progress in reversing the AIDS epidemic in some countries. However, he acknowledged that new infections are outpacing the gains achieved in treating patients. “AIDS remains one of the leading causes of premature death globally," he said. An estimated two million people have died of AIDS-related illnesses as of 2008. The UN estimates that 33.4 million people are afflicted with HIV worldwide. Some 2.7 million people were newly infected in 2008. Data from the AIDS Epidemic Update show that more HIV patients are living longer due to the beneficial effects of antiretroviral therapy. “The number of AIDS-related deaths has declined by over 10 percent over the past five years as more people gained access to the life-saving treatment," the report said. Since the availability of effective treatment in 1996, some 2.9 million lives have been saved, it added. With these improvements, Ban urged countries across the globe to be more tolerant of people living with HIV and remove all travel restrictions against them. He said countries should remove “punitive laws" and policies that restrict travel against people with the virus. “Successful AIDS responses do not punish people; they protect them," Ban said. - Joseph Holandes Ubalde/JCS/YA, GMANews.TV