China Finds (Another) HIV-Positive Septuagenarian

An elderly man in the city of Wuhan in central China was recently diagnosed with HIV, more evidence that the senior population is underserved by the nation's AIDS prevention efforts.

According to the state-run Xinhua News Agency, the widower approaching 80 had no recent history of blood transfusion and likely contracted the virus through unprotected sex. Last year, a Guangzhou health official said a 94-year-old was found to be HIV-positive. Xinhua said China's senior population is becoming more sexually active as overall health in the country improves.

In China, HIV/AIDS prevention efforts have typically focused on young people, men who have sex with men, sex workers, and migrants, Xinhua said. Older men report seeking out commercial sex because their wives either died or lacked interest in sex, according to China Daily. The newspaper cited the case of one 70-year-old HIV-positive man who said he thought he contracted the virus by having unprotected sex with women at a "sauna."

China has an estimated 4 million to 10 million female sex workers, China Daily said, citing a study by the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Some 6 percent of Chinese males ages 20-64 report paying for sex from these women, according to the report.

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