The number of Filipinos who contracted the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which leads to the dreaded and still incurable Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), has taken a dramatic leap, the National Epidemiology Center (NEC) reported Sunday. The NEC said it recorded 362 HIV cases from January to June this year, a sharp increase of 118 patients from the 244 cases during the same period last year. Out of the 362 cases, 97 percent or 350 were transmitted through sexual contact while two infants acquired the disease from their mother. The NEC had no data on how the other 10 cases were transmitted. It said all the latest infections were due to sexual contact. One-third of the total number of HIV cases were overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) with 1,254 patients on record, according to the NEC. It said there are now a total of 3,951 HIV patients in the country since 1984. Of this number, 815 have already developed AIDS. Furthermore, NEC data showed that out of the 815 AIDS patients, 314 have already died. Saudi Ambassador to the Philippines Mohammed Ameen Wali earlier expressed “deep concern” over the upsurge of HIV/AIDS cases in the Philippines. He urged clinics screening OFWs to rigorously monitor the health of Middle-East workers to thwart the transfer of communicable diseases to residents of Middle East countries. According to Dr. Rodolfo Punzalan, president of the Gulf Cooperation Council-(GCC) Accredited Medical Clinics Association (Gamca), Wali met with him last Friday to articulate the Saudi government's position on the HIV/AIDS situation in the Philippines. “He (Wali) was deeply alarmed over the reported increase (in HIV/AIDS), and asked me what we will do about this. Like Influenza A (H1N1), the Ambassador believes that HIV/AIDS is a serious health concern that should be dealt upon swiftly to protect their citizens,'' Punzalan said. Punzalan said he assured Wali that the upsurge of the HIV/AIDS cases was due to the Philippines' stringent screening examination. “The upsurge is due to social awareness. Our screening examinations have been more sensitive today. More people are getting tested, which is why the number is rising. The number might have already been there before but because people were not aware that they could get tested, they were not yet diagnosed,'' he explained. He said clinics like Gamca have been encouraged to promote HIV awareness in the workplace. Earlier, the Department of Health (DoH) said the Philippines' HIV/AIDS situation is still in the “low and slow''stage although UN officials had previously said that the cases might be even higher because many are “hidden” ones. HIV reduces the effectiveness of the human immune system and leaves victims susceptible to infections and tumors. It is transmitted from one person to another through the passing of bodily fluids, such as blood, semen, and breast milk. The World Health Organization has declared AIDS a pandemic. In 2007, an estimated 33.2 million people contracted the disease worldwide. AIDS has killed an estimated 2.1 million people, including 330,000 children since it was first diagnosed in the early 1980s.
