A report from the Higher Institute of Health (ISS), based on data collected in 2023, indicates that in that year there were 2,349 HIV diagnoses and 532 AIDS diagnoses, figures that represent an increase compared to the previous year, although lower than the 2019, when 2,510 infections and 647 serious illnesses were detected.
New HIV diagnoses in Italy, which mainly affect men between 30 and 39 years old and women between 25 and 29 years old, continue to increase and are returning to the levels recorded before the pandemic, experts warn.
This trend, which coincides with the trend of a significant increase in other sexually transmitted infections among young people, is indicative and suggests the need to promote greater awareness of both prevention standards and access to diagnostic tests, they add.
The three cities with the highest number of cases are Rome, Milan and Bologna, while the region with the lowest incidence is Veneto, with 1.1 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants, followed by Trentino, with 1.8, while the main route Transmission continues to be sexual, mainly among homosexuals (MSM), with 38.6 percent of cases.
The percentage, with respect to the total, of cases of heterosexual men positive for HIV infection is 26.6 points, while among heterosexual women it is 21.1 percent, specifies the note published on the specialized information digital site. Nurse 24.
The report warns that 35.0 percent of people diagnosed in 2023 requested a test to detect a suspected HIV-related disease or due to the appearance of symptoms, while a fifth did so after sexual behavior of risk.
On the other hand, the proportion of people who were recently diagnosed with AIDS, but did not know their HIV status at least six months before the development of the disease, reached 84.1 percent, the source adds.
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