To mark World Aids Day on Wednesday 1st December 2010, the Health   Service Executive (HSE) is launching a sexual health awareness campaign to help   combat STIs (sexually transmitted infections) among men and women in Ireland.   The HSE is reminding people that wearing a condom is the best way to reduce the   transmission of HIV/AIDs and other STIs.

Thirty three million people worldwide are living with the HIV/AIDS virus and   5,805 of these cases are in Ireland.  In the first half of 2010, 168 new cases   of HIV were diagnosed in Ireland compared 209 in 2009 and 186 in 2008.

Where route of transmission was reported approximately 45% of all new cases   were MSM (men who have sex with men), 40% were heterosexual and almost 12% were   IDU (intravenous drug use).  Males accounted for 123 of new cases (73%) and 44   new cases were female (26%).

As men account for the biggest increase in new cases of HIV/AIDS in Ireland,  the HSEâ??s sexual health awareness campaign has been devised to target MSMs to   encourage condom use and prevent sexually transmitted infections.  Â

According to Dr. Nazih Eldin, Head of Health Promotion in HSE Dublin North   East, â??Advancement in our knowledge of HIV and progress in relation to its   treatment must not make us complacent. The most effective method in the   preventing the transmission of HIV is through the proper use of condoms.â?

Further information on HIV and AIDS in Ireland can be found at www.hpsc.ie and visit www.yoursexualhealth.ie for more information about the HSEâ??s sexual health campaign.

ENDS

Issued by:

National Press Office

HSE

t: 016352840      

e: press@hse.ie

Notes to Editor

 
• There are 33.3 million people living with HIV/AIDS globally.
 
• Since the beginning of the epidemic, almost 60 million people have   been infected with the HIV virus and 25 million people have died of   HIV/AIDS-related causes.
 
• The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that infects   cells of the immune system, destroying or impairing their function. As the   infection progresses, the immune system becomes weaker, and the person becomes   more susceptible to infections. The most advanced stage of HIV infection is   acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It can take 10-15 years for an   HIV-infected person to develop AIDS; antiretroviral drugs can slow down the   process even further.
 
• HIV can be transmitted through unprotected sexual intercourse   (vaginal or anal) or oral sex with an infected person; transfusions of   contaminated blood; and the sharing of contaminated needles, syringes or other   sharp instruments. It can also be transmitted between a mother and her baby   during pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding.
 
• Combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) prevents the HIV virus from   multiplying in the body. If the reproduction of the HIV virus stops, then the   body’s immune cells are able to live longer and provide the body with protection   from infections.
 
• Source: World Health Organisation