The annual number of new HIV cases among homosexuals in Norway has more than doubled in the past two years, Oeivind Nilsen, a counselor with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, said in an interview with the daily Dagsavisen. After a decade of recording about 30 new HIV cases among homosexuals annually, the Institute listed 57 new cases in 2003. Preliminary numbers for 2004 show 61 new cases. "The real number is probably much higher," said Nilsen, adding that he would not be surprised if the number for last year reached at least 70. "The reasons for the increase in HIV are many, but one of the most worrying reasons is that gays expose themselves to a risk of infection by having unsafe sex," he said. In Norway, with a population of around 4.5 million, the total number of people infected with HIV during 2004 jumped to more than 250, up from 238 in 2003.

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