With 1,050 new cases of HIV infection reported in 2009, Australia is seeing its highest rate of transmission in two decades. (The peak was in 1986, with 2,400.) And while the the data from new surveys “show the proportion of gay men having unprotected sex has increased and the rate is at its highest in seven years in Sydney,” it’s actually a “jump in heterosexual infections” that’s to blame for new HIV cases. Infection rates among men who have sex with men (MSM, in clinical terms) dropped four percent. Which, given the increase in the number of MSM reporting unprotected anal sex, seems paradoxical.
Meanwhile: “As of late 2009, Australia had recorded a total 29,395 diagnoses of HIV infection since the virus was first discovered, with 10,446 of those cases resulting in AIDS and 6,776 related deaths. There were 20,171 Australians living with a diagnosed HIV infection at the end of 2009.”
crowd follower
quick somebody comment so I know what to think
Roger Rabbit
OOOH Me ME!!!
Time for them to start tracking WHICH HIV is being transmitted. IF this is happening between straight couples then it COULD be the form of virus from Africa. However, if instead it is the strain associated with gay men, then it’s them damn Str8 guys cheating!
me
So do MSM create HIV? I’m confused. Is it possible for MSM to not get or spread HIV if they aren’t already HIV positive themselves? Please clarify.
declanto
@me: WTF?
Mike in Asheville
Per the article, Australia has seen approximately 10,000 deaths and 20,000 currently infected in its population of 21 million. Roughly speaking, that is 1 death per 2,000 and 1 infected per 1,000.
In the US, there have been almost 600,000 deaths and 1.2 million currently infected in our population of 300 million. Roughly speaking, that is 1 death per 500 and 1 infected per 250.
Clearly Australia has been much more successful in limiting HIV/AIDS than the US with 25% of the rates of exposure than we have.
Lets have a closer look at how Australia has been able to far more successfully protect its citizens: safe sex campaigns OR abstinence campaigns? treatment levels? support levels?
me
All i asked was a simple question of clarification regarding MSM and HIV spreading. It wasn’t meant to be offensive in anyway. What gives?
Jason Dancin' to the Beat
@me. HIV is a virus. It’s not created. It’s just passed around from person to person.
Everybody, it seems like me is just asking a scientific question and didn’t have the informtioin.
I’m glad you ask questions. It means you want information. I encourage you to find out more about HIV. There’s a lot of information out there. Good luck.
Pete
You gays are never to blame for anything. You gays are the eternal victims dont you know that?
Kusaka
@Pete: yes sweetheart, we already know, but thanks anyway
B
QUEERTY: “Which, given the increase in the number of MSM reporting unprotected anal sex, seems paradoxical.”
You can have a decreasing HIV infection rate at the same time you are seeing an increase in unprotected anal sex if you also have an increased frequency of testing. You have one effect pushing the rate up and another pushing it down (people are apparently less infectious when they are being treated, so discovering an infection early reduces the number of subsequent infections).
The rate would be still lower if they did both – used protection and got tested more often.
shlong
What’s there to celebrate when the article mentions that bare-backing is on the RISE in the gay community? HIV cases will only rise with MSM if anal creampies is a rising selfish trend.
In Western European countries the WHO stats go like this: new HIV cases are almost exclusively linked to MSM sex and drug users among straight people. Sex between straights produces less new HIV cases compared to gay sex. It begs me to ask why do gay people in most of developed world still CONTINUE to add to new HIV infection rates?? We are the first group that should be going on rapid decline in HIV infections from our lessons learned from the 80s era. In Africa and India, uneducated people believe that having sex with virgins will cure their HIV, but in developed world there is no excuse for new HIV infections among LGBT. USE CONDOMS ALL THE FREAKING TIME!!!