50,000 people in Thailand are living with HIV unaware
Thailand is recording between 8,000 and 9,000 new HIV infections a year, more than eight times the target of under 1,000 annual cases needed for the country to end AIDS as a public health problem by 2030. The rate has held steady for the past five years, and infections are now rising among young people … The story 50,000 people in Thailand are living with HIV unaware as seen on Thaiger News .
Thailand is grappling with a significant HIV challenge, with 50,000 individuals unaware of their HIV status. The Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre reveals that the nation records between 8,000 and 9,000 new HIV infections annually, a rate that has remained stagnant for the past five years and is now on the rise among young people aged 15 to 24.
Associate Professor Dr Opass Putcharoen, deputy director of the centre, warns that this trend is nearing critical levels if it persists. He highlights the increasing prevalence of other sexually transmitted infections like syphilis, gonorrhoea, and chlamydia, particularly among the younger demographic. The Department of Disease Control attributes the persistent high rate of HIV infections to unsafe sexual practices, rather than a lack of access to testing or treatment.
Unsafe sex poses five to nine times the risk of HIV infection compared to protected sex, and a parallel rise in syphilis cases suggests the same pattern. Dr Virawat Manosuddhi, a department spokesman, points to inconsistent condom use as the link between syphilis cases, which have surged two and a half times since 2018, and nearly tripling among adolescents.
Young people aged 15 to 24 account for approximately 47% of the roughly 9,000 new HIV infections recorded each year. If left untreated, HIV typically progresses to AIDS within five to ten years, making treatment more difficult and expensive. Early diagnosis through home HIV self-test kits, available with a confirmatory test at a clinic, is crucial in managing the virus as a long-term condition.
The Thai Red Cross Anonymous Clinic on Rajdamri Road, Bangkok, offers walk-in services for HIV testing. PrEP, a preventive medication, is also available for HIV-negative individuals to prevent infection, though it requires a negative HIV test before starting. Government campaigns offer free HIV testing, condoms, and self-test kits, while the National Health Security Office provides free PrEP to high-risk groups.
The National Strategy to End AIDS 2017-2030 aims to reduce annual infections to under 1,000 by 2030, highlighting the urgency in addressing this issue.
Written by urgent.news from The Thaiger's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
