The Fidjian Minister of Health has just declared an HIV epidemic in the archipelago. 1093 new cases were recorded between January and September 2024. A very rapid spread that exceeds the capacities of health services.
This is an alert that could potentially worry the peaceful region as a whole announces the archipelago health services. According to the RNZ media, HIV figures explode in Fiji, and some specialists even assure that they are underestimated.
According to the latest official assessment, 1093 new cases were recorded between January and September last year. In mid-December, 19 children under the age of 5 were diagnosed positive in HIV. The Australian media ABC even evokes 100 dead from the disease last year.
This is why, in early December, the Fijian Medicine Association asked the government to declare the state of epidemic as a priority.
An epidemic that affects young men more between 20 and 29 years old. Contamination due in particular to drug injections.
-According to associations active on site, these figures have tripled compared to the year 2023. They also believe that more than half of people who live with HIV and who know it do not follow any treatment. A lack of support due to the lack of means but also for fear of treatment.
An UN program recently delivered 3000 antiretroviral drugs. Among the countries with sufficient data, HIV contamination is increasing in Fiji, Laos, Papua New Guinea or in the Philippines.
As a reminder, HIV is the virus responsible for AIDS, which is the final stage of the disease. The virus is generally transmitted by sexual, blood and mother to the child. It attacks cells in the immune system and gradually destroys them.
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