3 Pinoys getting HIV every day – UNDP

by Kristine Servando
abs-cbnNEWS.com/newsbreak

MANILA - The Philippines has seen an "alarming" increase in HIV cases in the past year, especially among overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and men who have sex with men (MSM), according to data by the HIV and AIDS Registry of the Department of Health, as cited by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

"Last May, the country had 85 reported cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the highest ever in the country. That's like 3 people a day, more cases than the A (H1N1) virus," said Danton Remoto, UNDP Communications officer, at the country's 1st National Conference on MSM, transgender, and HIV last July 22.

There have been 3,911 HIV cases since 1984, according to Department of Health (DOH) data as of May 2009.

All HIV cases were transmitted through sexual contact, with 36% of cases transmitted through homosexual contact and 89% of cases caused by unprotected sex.

Read more here

M2M 2009: National Conference on MSM/TG and HIV

Organized by TLF Share Collective and Health Action Information Network
With support from United Nations Development Program,
Philippine National AIDS Council and APCOM
22-24 July 2009, Greenhills Elan, San Juan

In the past few years the Philippines has seen a significant increase in the case of HIV transmission among males who have sex with male and transgenders (MSM/TG). Where before the ratio of homo to hetero sexual transmission is 1:3, in 2008 more than 50% of the new case are between males.

Read more HERE.

UN alarmed at rising HIV prevalence in RP

Source: ABS-CBN News

3 Pinoys getting HIV every day - UNDP

Source: Newsbreak

Written by Kristine Servando

TUESDAY, 28 JULY 2009

The Philippines has seen an "alarming" increase in HIV cases in the past year, especially among overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and men who have sex with men (MSM), according to data by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

"Last May, the country had 85 reported cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the highest ever in the country. That's like 3 people a day, more cases than the A (H1N1) virus," said Danton Remoto, UNDP Communications officer, at the country's 1st National Conference on MSM, transgender, and HIV last July 22.

There have been 3,911 HIV cases since 1984, according to Department of Health (DOH) data as of May 2009.

Read mode HERE.

Evidence shows new drug combination combination dramatically reduces mother-to child transmissionof HIV during breastfeeding

According to a new study led by the World Health Organization (WHO), if HIV-positive pregnant women are given a combination of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs from late in pregnancy until six months into breastfeeding, rather than a short course of drugs that ends at delivery, their babies are over 40% less likely to become infected with HIV.

The initial findings of the study, named Kesho Bora, which means ‘a better future’ in Swahili, were presented at the 5th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention taking place in Cape Town, South Africa, 19-22 July. WHO worked in partnership with the French National Agency for Research on AIDS and Viral Hepatitis (ANRS), the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) of the US National Institutes of Health.

Read more here

Join the HIV Red Party in the Philippines

The Red Party Rationale
Medical students across Australia have rallied as part of a nation-wide effort to increase awareness of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), a devastating spectrum of disease afflicting an estimated 33 million people across the globe.

To raise awareness, Australian medical students have hosted several fundraising and educational events all around the country. Themed with the color red, the international color for HIV and AIDS, the events have affectionately become known as 'Red Parties'.

Two of these Australian medical students, Patrick Aouad and Zabrina Abdool, from the Australian National University visited the Philippines recently. They saw the plight of our fellowmen, especially those seeking consult at the Philippine General Hospital.

They returned to Australia and proposed that the Adult Infectious Disease section of the Philippine General Hospital be the Red Party’s recipient of a CD4 machine, an indispensable diagnostic tool for people living with HIV/AIDS. Fortunately for us, they were granted this request.

Thus the PHILIPPINE RED PARTY came to be.

We are medical specialists, HIV positive patients, and HIV awareness advocates.

The Philippine Red Party Project will hold a photo exhibit on August 25, 2009 and a benefit rock concert on September 5, 2009, simultaneous with Australia’s Red Party.

Funds raised from these events will enable us to acquire an RT-PCR machine for doing HIV viral loads, to complement the CD4 machine from Australia.

For more information, wisit the Red Party website at www.redparty.20fr.com

PNAC Launches its Official Website

The Philippine National AIDS Council (PNAC) launched its official website at www.doh.gov.ph/pnac.