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HIV in teens a concern

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Dr Ruziana shares on the trend of reported HIV, AIDS, and death in Sarawak from 1989 to 2021.

KUCHING: Early detection and treatment are crucial in managing human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

HIV/STI/HepC head of section in the State Health Department Dr Ruzana Miss disclosed that approximately 30 per cent of HIV cases detected in Sarawak are already at the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) stage.

While the trend of HIV/AIDS cases in Sarawak has not increased dramatically over the years, she pointed out that there has been a gradual but continuous increase from 1989 to 2021.

“One of the main issues that we face is detecting cases at the early stage. We want to encourage the people to come forward, so we can detect and offer treatment early.

“Treatments for HIV are effective, but the rate of treatments is still relatively low. Despite having HIV, with correct and early treatment as well as virus suppression, patients can continue to have a healthy quality of life,” she said.

She said this during the virtual Media Sensitisation Workshop organised by the Malaysian AIDS Council (MAC) in collaboration with the Sarawak AIDS Concern Society (SACS) and fully endorsed by the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Monday (May 23).

Looking at the trend in Sarawak, Dr Ruziana noted that the number of cases involving those below 19 has seen an increase over the years particularly from 2016 onwards.

She said this indicates that teenagers are also exposed to the transmission of HIV which is concerning.

“When teenagers are exposed to HIV, they may not have proper understanding about this nor do they have proper access to resources.

adly, when they come to see us, they are at the AIDS stage which means they have had HIV for a long time.

“This is something that we strive to prevent. We want teenagers to be given the exposure and have the correct understanding,” she explained.

At the same time, she said that sexual behaviour is something that needs to be addressed to tackle HIV.

“The number of HIV cases is increasing due to issues like having multiple sexual partners and engaging in unprotected sex.

“Besides early detection and treatment, practicing healthy sexual behaviour is very important to combat HIV. An individual exposes himself or herself to high risk when not practicing healthy sexual behaviour,” she added.

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