United Kingdom: Manchester HIV Cases Double in Four Years

The number of people with HIV in greater Manchester, in North West England, has doubled in four years. Health experts said many of the infections occurred among travelers and businessmen who went abroad and had casual sex. Research shows more heterosexuals are affected than homosexuals, and three out of four heterosexuals testing HIV-positive contracted the virus outside the country. Between 2001 and 2004, cases in the region rose by 96 percent.

From 2003 to 2004, HIV cases in greater Manchester rose 22 percent -- the largest increase in the North West, according to researchers at the Center for Public Health at John Moores University. Over 2,000 people in greater Manchester now have HIV; an estimated 1 percent of all men ages 35-44 in the area have the disease. This is the fifth year in a row that the region has seen record numbers of new infections.

Professor John Ashton, regional director of public health, counseled people to practice fidelity within one relationship and to use condoms if a person is in more than one relationship.

Overall in the North West, 3,574 HIV/AIDS patients are receiving treatment, including 814 patients who were diagnosed in 2004. A proportion of the newly diagnosed are non-UK residents in the country as migrant workers, asylum seekers, overseas students or temporary visitors.

Professor Qutub Syed, director of Health Protection Agency North West, said, "It's a human tragedy that so many people are still not heeding the safer sex message. People need to realize that HIV is not exclusive to gay men or to people who live in sub-Saharan Africa. It is a threat to anyone who indulges in risky sexual behavior."

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