The average age of local HIV carriers is getting younger, with the incidence rate rising fastest among male teens, the Taiwan AIDS Foundation cautioned on Wednesday.
Quoting statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control, the foundation said the number of male student HIV carriers increased by 110 in 2007 and rose a further 156 last year.
“The figures mark an alarming 42 percent year-on-year surge,” said Lin Chiung-chao (林瓊照), the foundation’s secretary-general.
In the past, 70 percent of HIV carriers were aged between 20 and 40, Lin said. The trend, however, has changed in recent years, with more of those in the 15-to-19 age group becoming infected with the virus that causes AIDS.
“This is a general world trend, as the AIDS prevention publicity campaign has failed to catch up with the tendency that the average age of youngsters having sex for the first time has dropped to 16,” Lin said.
He urged public health and education authorities to step up publicity efforts to raise awareness among local teens about the risk of AIDS and the importance of safe sex.
The results of the foundation’s online surveys showed that 95 percent of Internet respondents said they would be willing to take HIV tests, with hospitals and public health centers their most favored places for such tests. In addition, 20 percent said it would be acceptable for regular health checkups to include HIV tests.
Lin said that 39 people tested HIV-positive at blood donation centers around the country in the first five months of this year.
“The figure is relatively high, as the number of people who tested HIV-positive at blood donation centers was 67 for the whole of last year,” he said, adding that more should be done to educate people not to use donating blood as a free HIV test.
He also urged those who indulge in high-risk sexual activity or who have shared syringes when abusing drugs to get tested for HIV within three months of taking part in such activities.
RSS