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In Russia, over the 11 months of 2017, 85 thousand new HIV-infected people were officially identified; the incidence (ratio of the number of cases per population) of HIV was 57.9 cases per 100 thousand population of the Russian Federation. Every hour in Russia there are 10 HIV-infected people.

The total number of registered HIV-infected people for all years of observation as of November 1, 2017 was 1,193,890 people, of whom 269,282 died.

The number of HIV-positive people living in the Russian Federation is very close to a million, and to be precise in 2017 it was 924,608 people.

And as a result, the rate of HIV infection among the Russian population is 629.8 HIV-infected citizens per 100 thousand population. If recalculated as a percentage, it turns out that 0.6% of the Russian population is infected with HIV.

Russia ranks 3rd, after South Africa and Nigeria, in terms of the rate of emergence of new HIV cases per unit of time (growth rate).

This is often associated with an increase in screening the population for HIV, but in fact, an increase in the number of those screened. In Europe, more than half (64%) of all new HIV infections occur in Russia.

TOP20 territories by HIV incidence in 2017

The leading territories in terms of HIV incidence in 2017 (by default for 10 months) were:

1. Kemerovo region– 174.5 per 100 thousand of us. (hereinafter %000), i.e. In absolute numbers, 4,727 new HIV-infected people were identified.
2. Irkutsk region– 134.0%000 (3,228 people), 2% of the region’s population are infected!
3. Sverdlovsk region– 128.1%000 (5,546 people). In the city of Yekaterinburg, 1,347 patients with HIV infection were identified (92.5%000).
4. Vladimir region– 124.6%000 (1,731 people).
5. Perm region for 11 months of 2017 – 126.2%000 (3,322 people), 13.1% more than the previous year.
6. Novosibirsk region – 120.3%000 (3,345 people).
7. Tyumen region - 109.2% 000 (1,614 people, including 5 teenagers).
8. Chelyabinsk region – 109.1%000 (3,821 people).
9. Tomsk region – 104.6%000 (1,129 people).
10. Kurgan region – 99.3%000 (848 people).
11. Krasnoyarsk Territory – 97.0%000 (2,789 people).
12. Orenburg region – 96.3%000 (1,916 people).
13. Altai Territory - 85.8%000 (2,030 people).
14. Omsk region – 84.8%000 (1,673 people).
15. Samara region - 84.2% 000 (2,698 people), every 100th resident of the region is HIV-infected.
16. Republic of Crimea – 79.0%000 (1,849 people).
17. Khanty-Mansiysk autonomous region– Yugra – in 11 months 2017– 83.5%000 (1,374 people).
18. Ulyanovsk region – 72.3%000 (906 people).
19. Republic of Khakassia – 71.0%000 (382 people).
20. Udmurt Republic – 69.2%000 (1,050 people).

The territories most affected by HIV infection (by default as of November 1, 2017) are:

1. Irkutsk region– 1,738.2 people living with HIV are registered per 100 thousand population (hereinafter %000) (41,872 people),
2. Sverdlovsk region– 93,494 people are infected with HIV. (1,704.3%000), i.e. ~ 2% of the population suffers from HIV infection, in addition, 2% of pregnant women (every 50th) are infected with HIV, e.g. The Sverdlovsk region is ahead of everyone in the number of children (~15,000) born to mothers with HIV infection. This is very serious, this is a real epidemic.
3. Kemerovo region – 1 630,7%000 (44,173 people).
4. Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug– 1,513.6%000 (24,915 people) (as of 12/01/2017 -1,522%000 (25,054 people)).
5. Samara region – 1,473.3%000 (47,200 people).
6. Tyumen region – 1,393.3%000 (20,592 people).
7. Orenburg region – 1,284.7%000 (25,560 people).
8. Chelyabinsk region – 1,198.0%000 (41,958 people).
9. Novosibirsk region – 1,104.3%000 (30,695 people).
10. Perm region as of 12/03/2017 – 1 237,8%000 (32,581 people).
11. Republic of Crimea – 1,037.9%000 (24,296 people).
12. Ulyanovsk region – 960.1%000 (12,029 people).
13. Altai Territory – 902.7%000 (21,355 people).
14. Leningrad region – 872.9%000 (15,642 people).
15. Krasnoyarsk Territory – 853.4%000 (24,538 people).
16. Tomsk region – 835.1%000 (9,010 people).
17. Kurgan region – 823.4%000 (7,033 people).
18. Tver region – 771.8%000 (10,009 people).
19. Omsk region – 737.5%000 (14,549 people).
20. Moscow region as of 12/01/2017– 565.8%000 (42,000 people).

10 most dangerous HIV regions Russia.

Leading cities in terms of HIV prevalence (by default as of November 1, 2017):

1. Kemerovo - 2,154.7% 000 (more than 12,000 people). 2% of residents of the city of Kemerovo are infected with HIV.
2. Novosibirsk as of May 19, 2017 – 2,121.1 (more than 34,000 people). More than 2% (every 47th) of Novosibirsk citizens are infected with HIV.
3. Irkutsk as of 12/01/2017– 1,964.0%000 (more than 12,250 people). 2% of Irkutsk are infected with HIV, every 50th.
4. Ekaterinburg - 1,956.0% 000 (28,478 people) Almost 2% of city residents are affected by HIV, every 51st, p.e. Yekaterinburg is called the “capital of AIDS”.
5. Chelyabinsk - 1,584.8% 000 (19,000 people) 1.6% of the city's population are HIV-infected, every 63rd.

St. Petersburg – 880.4%000 (46,499 people).

Moscow as of 12/01/2017– 710.8%000 (more than 88,000 people).

Sex composition

In 2017, men still predominated among HIV-infected people - 62.9%, women - 37.6%.

Age composition

The age group most affected by HIV is 30-39 years old, in which every 50th person has HIV infection. The epidemic is migrating to older age groups: for example, in 2000, the age group under 30 years old was 87%, and in 2017, HIV-infected people diagnosed at the age of 30-50 years old were 69%. But here also possible reason there may be late detection. Question: “When did they become infected with HIV?” In addition, cases of infection in very old age have become more frequent, for example

A 98-year-old grandfather infected with HIV was identified in Yekaterinburg.

Routes of infection

The sexual route continues to predominate, which should be very alarming, because... The population of people who have more than one sexual partner is large and has enormous potential for the development of an HIV epidemic.

In 2017, more than half of newly diagnosed HIV-infected people were infected through natural sexual contact., 2.3% – through unnatural sexual intercourse (“special” men), 46.1% – through the use of psychoactive substances, 1.4% – children born to women with HIV infection.

Infection within the walls of medical institutions is growing, which is also an indicator of the HIV epidemic:

h a 10 months of 2017 registered 12 cases of suspected HIV infection while providing medical care .

Mortality

In the first 10 months of 2017, 24,713 patients with HIV infection died in Russia, which is 8.2% more than in the same period last year.

Every day 80 HIV-infected people die.

Educational composition

Persons with secondary specialized education predominate. Perhaps in the future we will face a shortage of specialists due to HIV infection.

Treatment

Only a third of HIV-infected people (328,138 out of 709,022 in need) received the necessary treatment. There were interruptions in the supply of necessary drugs, and some patients (21,903 people) stopped taking necessary medications. Treatment regimens are outdated and do not promote adherence to their use. HIV treatment coverage has barely reached 35.5% of all living HIV-infected people; among those under medical supervision, this percentage is higher – 46.3%.

Population screening for HIV

In 2017 (10 months), survey coverage increased slightly, by approximately 10.8% - 27,330,821 Russians were examined, among whom 95% are not representatives of risk groups. That's why It is at least unprofessional to associate the growth of HIV infection with an increase in screening coverage (examination).

HIV prevalence among risk groups

According to biological and behavioral studies by the Open Institute of Population Health Foundation with the support of Rospotrebnadzor among key populations vulnerable to HIV (IDUs, MSM, sex workers) in 7 major cities RF.

conclusions

Based on the results of this study, it was found that all vulnerable groups of the population are severely affected by HIV. Among drug users, half are infected with HIV, among “special men” up to 23%, although this group, perhaps, cares more about their prevention than anyone else, but with the increase in the frequency of “safe” sexual intercourse, the risk of HIV infection increases.

1. In 2017, HIV and AIDS continued its victorious march across Russia, involving more and more new population groups in the epidemic process.
2. The preventive measures taken were insufficient. It turned out that simply distributing condoms and leaflets is not enough.
3. Low treatment coverage of people infected with HIV does not allow reducing the growth rate of the HIV epidemic.
4. To prevent an epidemic catastrophe, the intervention of the main political figure in Russia is required, volleys of all weapons: fidelity, abstinence, condoms, pre-exposure, post-exposure drug prophylaxis.
5. We need to develop our own pharmaceutical production capacity to create inexpensive, accessible drugs to maintain an undetectable viral load in HIV-infected people, pre-exposure, post-exposure prophylaxis.

Video. The HIV situation in Russia in 2017.

The information is based on official data from the Russian Federal AIDS Center, territorial AIDS centers, and ROSPOTREBNADZOR.

Forecasts. Scenarios for the further development of HIV infection in the Russian Federation.

1st scenario. Fantastic.

The first person of the state gives orders to the people to whom we, as taxpayers, pay money for the prevention and fight against HIV/AIDS, and they finally begin to work for results. A methadone treatment program for drug users is being introduced, used syringes are being exchanged for new ones, in public places information machines with free rubber bands appear (approx. there is another word, but it is prohibited for use in the territory Russian Federation ), the “optimization” of medical institutions is stopped, Dom-2-like series are no longer shown on TV, and fidelity in marriage, abstinence before marriage, mutual monogamy are promoted, patients receive 1 tablet per day and become “undetectable.” The incidence rate is gradually going down, we have surpassed America and are joyfully stepping into a bright future.

2nd scenario. Catastrophic.

Everything is done as it is now, i.e. nothing (based on the results) is done. Panic is growing among the population, the stigmatization of HIV-infected people is growing, the number of defense-ready and able-bodied population is decreasing, and as a result, the economy and military power of the country are falling. The country is plunging into chaos, the apocalypse is here.

3rd scenario. Plausible.

Everything is done as it is done, i.e. nothing is being done, BUT... people realize that they are on their own and begin to act independently, as best they can: some fall into abstinence, some establish proper marital relationships, some begin to always carry a pack of elastic bands with them and put them on 2-3 pieces, someone just stops using drugs. The growth rate of HIV infection is stabilizing. People understand that they can still do something to change their lives.

TASS DOSSIER. From May 15 to May 21, 2017, the All-Russian campaign “Stop HIV/AIDS” will be held in Russia for the third time. Its organizer is the Foundation for Social and Cultural Initiatives (the President of the Foundation is the wife of the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Svetlana Medvedeva). The action is carried out with the support of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Communications of Russia, Rosmolodezh, Rospotrebnadzor, as well as the Union of Rectors of Russia, leading state universities of the Russian Federation and the Russian Orthodox Church.

It is dedicated to World Day in memory of AIDS victims, which is held annually on the third Sunday in May. Its goal is to draw attention to this problem in Russia, to increase awareness of the population, especially young people, about the disease.

Campaign "Stop HIV/AIDS"

The all-Russian campaign “Stop HIV/AIDS” began to be held in Russia in 2016. The key event of the first campaign, held in May, was an open student forum. The second event was timed to coincide with World AIDS Day (December 1) and took place at the end of November. It started at the II All-Russian Forum for specialists in the prevention and treatment of the disease (November 28).

As part of the campaign, a public lesson"Knowledge - Responsibility - Health", which showed a film about current issues combating HIV infection.

HIV/AIDS disease

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) attacks the immune system and weakens the body's defenses against a wide range of infections and diseases, including some types of cancer. HIV-infected people gradually develop immunodeficiency.

The last stage of the disease that develops when infected with the human immunodeficiency virus is AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), when the human body loses the ability to protect itself from infections and tumors. U different people AIDS can develop 2-15 years after HIV infection.

There is no cure for HIV infection. However, through treatment with antiretroviral drugs, the virus can be controlled and transmission can be prevented. This facilitates and prolongs the life of those infected with the infection.

Statistics for Russia

The epidemiological situation regarding HIV infection in Russia (the first case was identified in 1987) is unfavorable; cases of the disease have been identified in all constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

According to Rospotrebnadzor, as of December 31, 2016, since 1987, a total of 1 million 114 thousand 815 cases of HIV infection have been registered among citizens of the Russian Federation, of which 243 thousand 863 people have died. Thus, at the beginning of 2017, 870 thousand 952 Russians lived in Russia with a diagnosis of HIV/AIDS, which is 0.59% of the total population of the country (146 million 804 thousand 372). The prevalence of HIV as of December 31, 2016 was an average of 594.3 people with an established diagnosis per 100 thousand of the country’s population.

The number of newly identified cases of HIV infection in the country continues to grow. According to Rospotrebnadzor, in 2011-2016. the annual increase averaged 10%. In 2016, territorial centers for the prevention and control of AIDS registered 103 thousand 438 new cases of HIV infection (excluding those identified anonymously and foreign citizens) - 5.3% more than in 2015 (95 thousand 475).

High HIV prevalence is observed in the 30 most large subjects Russian Federation, where 45.3% of the country's population lives. The most unfavorable regions, where the number of people living with HIV exceeds 1 thousand people per 100 thousand population, are Sverdlovsk (1648 per 100 thousand population), Irkutsk (1636), Kemerovo (1583), Samara (1477), Orenburg (1217) region, Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug (1202), Leningrad (1147), Tyumen (1085), Chelyabinsk (1079) and Novosibirsk (1022) regions.

A high level of HIV infection in the Russian Federation is observed in the age group from 30 to 39 years. Among young people (15-20 years old), more than 1.1 thousand people with HIV infection are registered annually. Cases of infection of children during breastfeeding continue to be identified: in 2014, 41 children were infected, in 2015 - 47 children, in 2016 - 59.

On dispensary registration in specialized medical organizations in 2016, there were 675 thousand 403 patients (77.5% of all those living with a diagnosis of HIV/AIDS). Of these, 285 thousand 920 patients (42.3% of those registered) received antiretroviral therapy.

HIV/AIDS in the world

Some scientists believe that HIV was transmitted from monkeys to humans as early as the 1920s. The first victim of this disease may have been a man who died in 1959 in the Congo. This conclusion was reached by doctors who later analyzed his medical history.

For the first time, symptoms of the disease characteristic of HIV/AIDS were described in 1981 during an examination of several men of non-traditional sexual orientation in clinics in Los Angeles and New York. In 1983, researchers from the USA and France described a virus that can cause HIV/AIDS. Since 1985, HIV blood testing has become available in clinical laboratories.

According to the World Health Organization, at the end of 2015, there were from 34 to 39.8 million (on average 36.7 million) people living with HIV in the world. The most affected region is sub-Saharan Africa, with about 25.6 million people living with HIV in 2015 (approximately two-thirds of all those infected). More than 35 million people have become victims of HIV/AIDS in the world. In 2015 alone, approximately 1.1 million people died. As of June 2016, 18.2 million patients had access to antiretroviral treatment, including 910 thousand children.

The only regions in the world where the HIV epidemic continues to spread rapidly are Eastern Europe and Central Asia, according to a new UNAIDS report. Russia in these regions accounted for 80% of new HIV cases in 2015, the international organization notes. Another 15% of new diseases occur collectively in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Tajikistan and Ukraine.

In terms of the rate of spread of the epidemic, Russia has overtaken even the countries of South Africa, as follows from the latest morbidity statistics. Meanwhile Russian authorities not only do they not increase funding for the purchase of drugs for patients, but, if you believe reports from the regions, they even increase savings on this item.

By comparing published UNAIDS statistics on new HIV cases in different countries with the number of patients already existing in these countries, Gazeta.Ru was convinced that our country is leading in the rate of spread of HIV not only in its region.

The share of new HIV cases in 2015 in Russia is more than 11% of total number people living with HIV (95.5 thousand and 824 thousand, respectively, according to the Federal AIDS Center). In the vast majority of African countries, the number of new cases does not exceed 8%, in largest countries In South America, this share in 2015 was about 5% of the total number of patients.

For example, in terms of the rate of growth of new cases in 2015, Russia is ahead of such African countries as Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, each of them has almost twice as many patients as in our country (1.4-1.5 million people ).

More new cases than in Russia now occur annually only in Nigeria - 250 thousand infections, but the total number of carriers there is many times higher - 3.5 million people, so in proportion the incidence is lower - about 7.1%.

HIV epidemic in the world

In 2015, there were 36.7 million people living with HIV worldwide. Of these, 17 million were receiving antiretroviral therapy. The number of new infections reached 2.1 million. Last year, 1.1 million people died from AIDS worldwide.

The number of new HIV infections in Eastern Europe and Central Asia has increased by 57% since 2010. Over the same period, the Caribbean saw a 9% increase in new cases, a 4% increase in the Middle East and North Africa and a 2% increase in Latin America.

Declines were observed in Eastern and Southern Africa (by 4%) and in Asia and the Pacific (by 3%). Europe, North America and West and Central Africa saw slight declines.

In the largest countries of Latin America - Venezuela, Brazil, Mexico - the share of new cases of HIV infection remained at 5% of the number of carriers. For example, in Brazil, where the number of people living with HIV is approximately the same as in Russia (830 thousand), 44 thousand people became infected in 2015.

In the USA, where there are one and a half times more HIV patients than in Russia, half as many people become ill each year - about 50 thousand people, according to charitable organization AVERT, which funds the fight against AIDS.

Russia can't cope on its own

UNAIDS experts see the main reason for the deterioration of the situation in the fact that Russia has lost international support for HIV programs and has not been able to replace it with adequate prevention at the expense of the budget.

In 2004-2013, the Global Fund remained the largest donor for HIV prevention in the region (Eastern Europe and Central Asia), but as a result of the World Bank classifying Russia as a country with high level income, international support has gone, and internal financing The fight against HIV has not ensured adequate coverage of antiretroviral therapy (prevents the transition of HIV to AIDS and ensures the prevention of infection).

The amount of grants from the Global Fund for HIV amounted to more than $200 million, head of the Federal AIDS Center Vadim Pokrovsky told Gazeta.Ru. “Many preventive and treatment programs were implemented in the country with this money. After the government returned this money to the Global Fund, it focused mainly on financing treatment, and there was no one to finance prevention programs; they died out,” he complains.

According to the Ministry of Health, today only 37% of patients who are constantly monitored receive the necessary medications. Of the total number of patients, this is only 28%, according to data from the Federal AIDS Center. There is not enough money allocated, so in Russia there is a standard according to which medications are prescribed only in the event of a critical decrease in the immunity of an HIV-infected person. This does not correspond to the WHO recommendation to treat all patients immediately after detection of the virus.

Another reason is that Russia is the leader in the use of injecting drugs by the population - 1.5 million people in our country already take them, according to the UNAIDS report.

It is the use of drugs with unsterile instruments that remains the cause the largest number infections - 54% of patients became infected in this way.

Prevention among drug addicts and other groups increased risk Pokrovsky previously told Gazeta.Ru that almost no work is being carried out. According to UNAIDS, after the end of Global Fund grants in 2014, 30 projects serving 27 thousand people were left without support in Russia. And while the remaining projects in 2015 continued to support HIV prevention services among drug users in 16 cities, their scale was not sufficient, the report notes.

Russia also does not support the UN-recommended methadone substitution therapy, which involves drug addicts taking methadone instead of the drug they use. In this therapy programs, as a rule, methadone is used in the form of a liquid substance mixed with syrup or water, and is taken orally, without the use of injection needles and syringes, which reduces the risk of transmission not only of HIV, but also of other dangerous infectious diseases, including hepatitis A.

Secret underfunding

The release of the UNAIDS report coincided with the appearance of the first signals from Russian regions that funding for the purchase of HIV drugs may be reduced, despite recent statements by the head of the Ministry of Health, Veronika Skvortsova, about her intention to increase the proportion of patients receiving therapy.

The Republic of Karelia has been allocated 25% less funds compared to 2015 - 29.7 million instead of 37 million rubles, TASS reported on July 13, citing the regional Ministry of Health. At the same time, less funds were also allocated from the regional budget than last year - the reduction was 10%. The Krasnoyarsk Territory also received less money in 2016 (326 million instead of 400 million rubles in 2015), reports State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company Krasnoyarsk.

Similar reports are coming from St. Petersburg, the Perm Territory and other regions. At the same time, the total amount of funds provided in the 2015 and 2016 federal budgets for the purchase of antiretroviral drugs is approximately the same - the amount remains at about 21 billion rubles, part of the funds is allocated for purchases for federal medical institutions.

In the 2015 budget, 17.485 billion rubles were allocated directly to the regions; in 2016, the amount decreased slightly and amounted to 17.441 billion rubles. Information about whether the funds were delivered to the regions in full or somehow redistributed or frozen is kept secret by federal ministries. The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Health did not respond to relevant requests from Gazeta.Ru.

According to the government report on the implementation of the anti-crisis plan, which Gazeta.Ru was able to review, the money was transferred to regional budgets in full, but the Ministry of Finance refused to confirm this information.

How the world is fighting HIV

Measures to combat HIV in general are the same all over the world: prevention includes informing the population, identifying the most vulnerable groups of citizens, distributing contraceptives and syringes, active measures are antiretroviral therapy, which maintains the standard of living of those already ill and prevents the patient from infecting others. However, each country has its own regional characteristics.

Governments in the United States primarily fund social campaigns to combat the taboo topic of AIDS. Also, with the help of social actions, Americans are encouraged to undergo regular testing, especially if the person belongs to one of the most vulnerable groups - black citizens, men who have had homosexual contacts, and others.

Another way to combat the spread of HIV and AIDS is sex education. In 2013, the immunodeficiency virus was taught in 85% of American schools. In 1997, these programs were taught in 92% of American schools, but due to resistance from citizen religious groups, enrollment rates have declined.

From 1996 to 2009 to promote abstinence as the only way More than $1.5 billion was spent in the fight against HIV in the United States. But since 2009, funding for “orthodox” methods began to decline, and more funds began to be allocated to disseminating comprehensive information.

However, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, so far only 15 states require that students talk about contraception when talking to schoolchildren about HIV prevention, despite the fact that, according to statistics, 47% of high school students have had sexual experience. Information about HIV remains optional in 15 states, as does sex education; in two more, only sex education is included in the program.

In China, according to 2013 data, 780 thousand people live with the immunodeficiency virus, more than a quarter of whom receive antiretroviral therapy. The most vulnerable groups of the population are gays and bisexuals, young Chinese under 24 years of age, drug addicts who inject themselves, and a high proportion of infections from mother to child. In China, infection most often occurs through unprotected sex, so preventing sexual transmission of the virus accounts for the bulk of efforts. Measures include treatment for couples in which one of the partners is infected with HIV, distributing free condoms, popularizing testing for the virus, and informing children and adults about the disease.

A separate category of efforts is the fight against the illegal blood market, which flourished after the ban on imported blood products in the 1980s. Enterprising Chinese, according to Avert, were looking for plasma donors in rural areas, without any concern for the safety of the procedure. Only in 2010 did China begin to test all donated blood for HIV.

In India, the world's second largest country, 2.1 million people were living with HIV in 2015, one of the highest numbers in the world. Of those sick, 36% received treatment.

Hindus identify four risk groups. These are sex workers, illegal immigrants, men who have had homosexual contacts, drug addicts and the hijra caste (one of the untouchable castes, which includes transgender people, bisexuals, hermaphrodites, castrati).

As in many other countries, the fight against HIV in India is carried out through outreach to the most vulnerable segments of the population, information, distribution of condoms, syringes and needles, as well as methadone substitution therapy. The epidemic in the country is declining: in 2015, according to UNAIDS, less people than in Russia - 86 thousand people.

In Latin and Central America in 2014, there were 1.6 million people living with the immunodeficiency virus, 44% of whom received the necessary treatment. Among the measures that countries in the region have taken to combat the epidemic are social campaigns explaining what HIV is and why people with the disease cannot be discriminated against. Such actions took place, in particular, in Peru, Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico. Needle and syringe programs were held in five countries—Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Paraguay and Uruguay—and substitution therapy was used in select cities in Colombia and Mexico. In some countries in the region, sick people receive cash benefits.

Australia, which has one of the lowest incidence rates in the world, achieved these results by introducing comprehensive prevention programs and by never stopping them. She also began the fight against HIV earlier than others, notes Pokrovsky from the AIDS Center. “For example, back in 1989, I became acquainted with the work of the organization “Collective of Prostitutes of Australia,” which was involved in HIV prevention among sex workers. This and dozens of similar projects were constantly funded by the government,” he emphasizes.

About the HIV epidemic. The virus was detected in 1.8 percent of city residents, that is, 27 thousand people. In general, the entire Sverdlovsk region is in first place in terms of the number of HIV-infected people in Russia. In general, an outbreak of infection was recorded in 10 regions. The number of infected people in the country has exceeded one million. And about half more do not know about their diagnosis. Is Russia in danger? large-scale epidemic HIV, Lenta.ru found out.

What's happening?

The Sverdlovsk region took first place in the number of HIV-infected people in Russia. In the capital of the region - Yekaterinburg - every fiftieth person is sick. First Deputy Head of the Yekaterinburg Health Department Tatyana Savinova announced this at a press conference in TASS. In total, 26,693 cases of HIV infection were registered in the city. That is, almost 2 percent of city residents are infected. In the Zheleznodorozhny district of the city, more than 2 percent are already infected. About 52 percent became infected through drug use, through intravenous injections, and 46 percent through sexual contact. Now the incidence is growing precisely due to the sexual route of infection.

According to the criteria of the World Health Organization (WHO), if the virus is detected in more than 1 percent of residents in a region (especially pregnant women), this means that the stage of a “generalized” epidemic has begun. That is, the disease extends beyond the risk groups where it has circulated for a long time. The Yekaterinburg Health Department said that no one specifically declared an HIV epidemic in the city. According to Savinova, the generalized stage of the spread of HIV did not begin yesterday, and there is hardly any point in talking about an epidemic, since it is not a seasonal disease like the flu.

Geography of HIV

According to Rospotrebnadzor, the epidemiological threshold of 1 percent was exceeded in Kemerovo, Ulyanovsk, Irkutsk, Tyumen regions, Perm region, Leningrad, Chelyabinsk and Orenburg regions, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Tomsk region, Altai region, Novosibirsk, Murmansk, Omsk, Ivanovo, Tver and Kurgan regions. The leaders are Samara and the already mentioned Sverdlovsk regions. More than 2 percent of pregnant women are infected here.

In Russia as a whole, the number of HIV-infected people has exceeded one million. Experts believe that about 500-800 thousand more Russians are unaware of their illness, since they do not consider themselves to be at risk and have never been tested.

AIDS has become closer

Previously, HIV in Russia was considered the lot of marginalized people - drug addicts, prostitutes, homosexuals. But a generalized epidemic means that now anyone can become infected. This is not the flu yet - HIV is still not transmitted by airborne droplets, but in order to guarantee avoidance of infection, it is no longer enough to simply avoid communication with risk groups. Many people do not know whether their partner has been tested for HIV infection or not, or whether he could have been infected in the past. Meanwhile, every fortieth man aged 30–35 years is infected with HIV. Depending on the region, every twentieth man aged 21-40 years is infected. The likelihood of infection is very high.

Doctors recommend being careful not only in choosing partners, but also when seeking medical help. According to the Federal Center for Prevention and Control of AIDS (over the past five years), there is reliable information about more than 10 cases of nosocomial infection. The department declined to name the regions, “since these incidents are possible everywhere.” The fact is that in order to save money, hospitals are again practicing the repeated use of syringes (even disposable ones can be injected again) and other medical equipment that requires sterilization before use. The identified cases are mainly related to children, since “it is easier to establish the chain of infection in them.” However, experts do not rule out that adults could also become infected in the same way.

What to expect?

According to the AIDS Center, the number of infected Russians is increasing at a rate of up to 10 percent per year. Up to 270 cases are registered per day. 50-60 people die every day. The percentage of people infected in our country is three times higher than in the EU countries. Twice as much as in France, and ten times as much as in Germany.

In October 2015, Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova said that the HIV epidemic in Russia could be out of control by 2020 if treatment coverage is not increased. The UN has adopted recommendations to combat the epidemic. Experts believe that the growth of incidence can be stopped using the “90-90-90” formula. That is, it is necessary that 90 percent of patients know about their diagnosis and 90 percent of them receive the necessary treatment. Then 90 percent of HIV-infected people will not be infectious to others.

According to Rospotrebnadzor, only 19 percent of Russians were tested last year. About 30 percent of patients receive the necessary medications. According to the head of the AIDS Center, academician Vadim Pokrovsky, in order to implement the international strategy, the state must spend at least 100 billion rubles a year. In 2017, 18 billion rubles are allocated to fight HIV - more than five times less.

After reporting an epidemic in Yekaterinburg, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev ordered another 2.28 billion rubles to be allocated from the budget for the purchase of medicines for citizens infected with HIV and hepatitis B and C.

Detection or abstinence?

The mayor of Yekaterinburg, Evgeny Roizman, emphasized that the situation in the city is typical for all of Russia. “We have a very high detection rate,” he is quoted as saying. - That is, we are doing this purposefully. We have strong doctors, we have very strong detection programs. In Yekaterinburg, 23 percent of the population was examined. Meanwhile, in Russia - no higher than 15. That is, we have one and a half times more people examined. And if they investigate at this level in Novosibirsk, Saratov, Samara, Tver, then, believe me, the situation there will be even worse.”

Chief freelance specialist on the problems of diagnosis and treatment of HIV infection at the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Evgeniy Voronin, says that there are only two countries in the world in which the incidence of HIV is growing - Ukraine and Russia.

According to him, the Ministry of Health is confident that “increasing public awareness, increasing testing and maximum coverage of therapy can radically change the situation.” The department hopes that in two years the country will record a sharp decline new infections.

“There are positive examples,” Voronin emphasized. - In Tatarstan, which is one of the twenty regions in the HIV risk zone, about 30 percent of the population was tested, and more than 60 percent were treated with therapy. And there they really started to decline.”). The concept consists of three parts. The first is abstinence until marriage and marriage no earlier than 19 years of age, when a person has accumulated some kind of life experience, - one of the authors of the report, demographer Igor Beloborodov, told Lenta.ru. - The second is loyalty. Through social advertising, messengers, and speeches by politicians, the public was given a signal: do not cheat in marriage. And only the third part, and far from the most important, is condoms. If you are crazy and engage in prostitution or use drugs, then at least use protection. Our liberal apologists took only the last part of this entire three-stage system. But there have already been examples of the disastrous consequences of such selectivity. Take two African countries - Uganda and neighboring Botswana. The first diligently used all three methods of prevention. As a result, the incidence of AIDS in Uganda fell threefold from 1990 to 2011. And in Botswana it grew eight times.”

HIV infection in the world is one of the most progressive sexually transmitted diseases. It is also worth noting that AIDS statistics in the world, as a rule, absolutely do not correspond to the true picture of the spread of the disease, since research methods are based only on patients who are served in medical institutions. At the same time, most carriers of the infection and patients do not even suspect they are infected due to reluctance or inability to see a doctor.

Another factor contributing to the concealment of true information about the spread of AIDS in the world is the fear politicians and doctors will be to blame for the inability to contain the avalanche of infection that is rapidly moving towards humanity.

State of the spread of HIV in the world

The number of HIV-infected people in the world is growing exponentially. First of all, this is due to the fact that the problem of AIDS in the world does not lend itself to the basic rules of combating infectious diseases, which are based on the exclusion of one of the components of the epidemiological process:

1. Source of the disease.
2. Path of transmission.
3. Receptive population.

In countries around the world, HIV has long become the number one problem. For every infection to spread, there needs to be a source, a transmission route that ensures the virus reaches a susceptible population. In the case of HIV, there is no way to act on any of the three components that contribute to the spread of the disease. A huge problem is that most people become infected from carriers of the virus who are in the so-called “serological window”, when a person is already infected, but tests are still negative. It has not been possible to exclude the latter factor for many decades, since the invention of a vaccine against immunodeficiency has been postponed indefinitely due to insufficient knowledge, research and technical capabilities.

Taking into account the above, HIV statistics in the world will worsen every year, since many people on the planet underestimate the danger of the immunodeficiency virus. The current HIV epidemic situation in the world can only be influenced by the awareness of the population and support for the fight against AIDS at the state level.

Prevalence of HIV infection (AIDS) in the world

Only by the end of the eighties, the statistics of HIV-infected people in the world reached levels that shocked the world community. In 142 countries, the World Health Organization has identified more than 120 thousand people with AIDS and more than 100 thousand infected with the retrovirus. The real prevalence of HIV in the world is much higher than these data, since there is always a percentage of the population that is not registered in medical institutions and therefore cannot be taken into account in statistical indicators. There are also carriers who are not even aware of their infection. The AIDS epidemic in the world mainly affects people of reproductive age. This leads to a significant loss of the working population, a decrease in the birth rate of healthy children and, accordingly, a decrease in the health indicators of all layers of humanity.

How many HIV-infected people are there in the world?

The question that interests many is how many people have AIDS in the world today? The first place in the world for HIV is occupied by the countries of southern Africa, India, Russia, the USA and Latin America. In these states, infected people make up approximately 15% of the total population. Every year the number of HIV-infected people in countries around the world increases by 5-10 million. Thus, at the beginning of the 21st century, the number of AIDS patients in the world amounted to more than 60 million. The countries of southern Africa occupy the first place in the world community in terms of AIDS. Due to the unstable economic situation, the possibility of treating and identifying HIV-infected people is very difficult. This leads to the rapid and rapid spread of immunodeficiency among people. The disease progresses very quickly to stage 4 - AIDS.

Epidemiological situation of HIV infection in the world

Countries in which the incidence of immunodeficiency is rapidly increasing:

1. Brazil.
2. countries of Central Africa.
3. Haiti.
4. Indonesia.
5. Bangladesh.
6. Pakistan.
7. Mexico.
8. Great Britain.
9. Türkiye.

The ways in which AIDS spreads in countries around the world to some extent depend on the economic situation in the state and its policy towards HIV-infected people. There are such features:

1. The countries of the European Union, the USA, Australia and New Zealand are characterized by high early detection of the disease among the population. This is due to compulsory health insurance and relatively frequent high-quality medical examinations. Based on the results of the study, we can conclude that 80% of those infected were identified among homosexual men and drug addicts who use intravenous drugs. In childhood, the incidence is practically not recorded. This is due to timely and high-quality treatment of infected pregnant women, which prevents the vertical transmission of immunodeficiency (from a sick mother to a healthy fetus through the placenta, blood, breast milk). Cases of non-sexual transmission are practically never recorded in these countries.
2. For the countries of Africa and the adjacent warm islands, as well as the countries of the Caribbean, Indonesia, the rate of early detection of AIDS is very low. In these countries, the majority of patients are heterosexual. Their age is 18-38 years. Most of these people became infected through sexual contact with prostitutes. Studies show that more than 90% of them are infected with a retrovirus. In African countries, HIV transmission is often associated with sexual contact with an infected woman. More often, such intercourse additionally leads to diseases that are sexually transmitted. And genital ulcers that develop due to these pathologies lead to a higher likelihood of pathogen transmission. In such states, transfusion of blood and its products from an infected donor to a healthy recipient is not uncommon.
3. Countries where HIV was introduced relatively recently. These include Asia and Eastern Europe. Retrovirus infection here occurs primarily through sexual contact. The highest risk of infection is among people who have many sexual partners and do not neglect unprotected relationships with prostitutes.

HIV in Russia

The first place in HIV in the Russian Federation is occupied by Ural Federal District. It has about 800 patients registered per 100 thousand population, which is a very high figure. Over the past 15 years in Russia, cases of detection of immunodeficiency in pregnant women have increased by 15%. At the same time, such women are registered at a later date, which leads to intrauterine infection of the fetus due to the lack of necessary treatment for early stages embryo formation. Also, the Siberian Federal District claims first place in AIDS in Russia, where about 600 infected people per 100 thousand people are registered, most of them have the last stage of development of the disease, that is, AIDS.

Medical news in the world of HIV

Nowadays, the task of creating a vaccine against a retrovirus is in the first place for scientists. There is now a huge amount of research work in the field of molecular microbiology, which undoubtedly brings humanity closer to the creation of a vaccine against AIDS. Despite this, there are a number of factors that prevent the possibility of obtaining such a drug:

• High ability of the virus to mutate.
• Variety of HIV strains (per this moment 2 types are known).
• The need to combat not only the retrovirus, but also infected cells of the body, as well as AIDS-associated infections.

Due to the fact that the spread of HIV in the world is growing every year, many patients simply do not have time to wait for a vaccine. Therefore, the main way to combat this disease should be aimed at preventive measures. All HIV-infected people in the world receive free treatment, which provides them with the most comfortable life possible. With adequate and competent therapy, patients can live a full and long life. HIV treatment around the world is carried out in regional AIDS centers according to uniform standards and includes individual approach for any patient, selection of a regimen depending on the stage of pathology progression. The main principle of providing medical care is maximum confidentiality.

AIDS is constantly spreading among the world's population, but it is not yet possible to cure it completely. Therefore, it is worth directing maximum efforts to prevent such a dangerous pathology.