On November 23, Vitebsk / Olga Bogacheva - BELTA /. In the Vitebsk region, 61 new cases of HIV infection were detected in January-October, which is 6.2% less compared to the same period last year, Valentina Ananyeva, Head of the AIDS Prevention Department of the Vitebsk Regional Center for Hygiene, Epidemiology and Public Health, told a BELTA correspondent. Despite some improvement, the situation with the spread of this disease remains complex and causes concern among doctors, Valentina Ananyeva emphasized. Thus, a trend towards an increase in the proportion of sexual transmission of HIV is noted. For 10 months, it amounted to 77%. The proportion of workers and employees involved in the epidemic process is growing. For example, the proportion of workers among HIV-infected people in 2009 was 23.9%, in 2010 - 37.2%, and in January-October of this year - 50.8%, or 31 out of 61 people. Currently, the prevalence of the disease is characterized by an increase in the infection rate of the rural population, while the proportion of sexual transmission of HIV infection among rural residents is 86.2%. The most unfavorable districts in the region are Liozno (34 cases), Tolochin (43), Polotsk (17), Gorodok (33), Dubrovno (14), Vitebsk (25) districts, and the cities of Polotsk (94), Vitebsk (220). The age structure is changing. Thus, the epidemic process mainly involves the working-age population - 25-39 years old. The proportion of infections in the age group over 30 has significantly increased: from 36% in 2006 to 70.5% in the 10 months of 2011. Valentina Ananyeva called the absence of HIV infection cases among young people aged 15-19 this year a positive fact. In total, as of November 1, 2011, 660 cases of HIV infection were registered in the Vitebsk region, with a prevalence rate of 44.7 per 100,000 population. -0-

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