the goan I network
PANAJI
As people around the globe commemorate World AIDS Day on December 1, statistics provided by Goa State Aids Control Society does not paint a rosy picture in Goa.
Statistics reveal that 211 people have been detected HIV positive in 2018, upto September. Of the 211, 88% of them (186 people) contracted the virus sexually, while 7% (15 children) got the virus from their parents.
The virus got transmitted to two people via an infected syringe or needle, while one person got the virus through blood/blood products. Seven people got the virus from an unspecified route. A study conducted from 2001 to 2017 in Goa shows that of the cases that came to light, over 90% of people are transmitted the virus sexually.
Across the age spectrum, more males than females carry the virus. In 2018 itself, of the 51 cases detected in people over the age of 50, 33 are male, as opposed to 18 being female. Between the ages of 35 to 49, of the 89 cases that have come to light, 47 are male, and 42 female, while between the ages of 25 to 34, 39 cases have been detected of which 27 are male, and 12 are female. 14 males between 15 and 24 were detected with the virus this year, as were 10 females, while 5 males and 3 females below the age of 14 tested positive.
The HIV infection is prevalent in all parts of Goa, with the majority of cases being reported from the four coastal talukas -- Salcete, Mormugao, Tiswadi and Bardez. While maximum cases have been detected in Salcete with 20%, Mormugao is second with nearly 13%, and 7.5% of cases detected in Tiswadi and Bardez both. Sattari and Canacona are the talukas with least number of cases detected this year.
It has been found that 32% of cases reported this year, are of people that either belong to other states, foreigners, or unspecified.
December 1, is the 30th World AIDS Day, and the United Nations is making a global call for increased access to HIV testing. Each year, millions of cases around the world go undetected. It is estimated that of the 37 million people living with HIV across the globe, a quarter do not know they have the virus. The theme for this year’s World AIDS day is “Live Life Positively - Know Your HIV status.”
AIDS: FACTS & FIGURES
211 people detected HIV positive in 2018 till September; 7% (15 children) got the virus from their parents
Two people were infected via a syringe or needle, while one person was infected through blood/blood products
Seven people got the virus from an unspecified route
Study from 2001 to 2017 shows over 90% of people were transmitted the virus sexually
