ONE-FOURTH of the people who tested positive for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the country last year came from Central Visayas.
HIV is the virus that causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
“In 2010, 88 percent of cases came from three regions, including Central Visayas,” said Department of Health (DOH) Assistant Secretary Dr. Eric Tayag during a seminar on HIV and AIDS last May 19-20 at Estancia Resort Hotel in Tagaytay City.
The National Capital Region (NCR) accounted for 54 percent of the cases; Central Visayas, 24 percent; and Calabarzon, 10 percent, DOH National Epidemiology Center data showed.
Sex workers
This year, two-thirds of the new cases reported so far came from two regions: NCR (55 percent) and Calabarzon (11 percent).
Central Visayas contributed five percent.
Despite the relatively small number of cases reported in Central Visayas this year, Cebu City, which is in Central Visayas, has the highest HIV prevalence among freelance female sex workers (FFSW) and injecting drug users (IDU) in the country.
According to the Integrated HIV Behavioral and Serologic Surveillance (IHBSS) 2011, 5.5 percent of FFSWs in Cebu City are infected with HIV, while 53 percent of IDUs who participated in the survey were also HIV positive.
