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[av_heading heading=’Free HIV tests on World AIDS Day’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=” av-medium-font-size-title=” av-small-font-size-title=” av-mini-font-size-title=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”][/av_heading]
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ILOILO City – To mark World AIDS Day yesterday, the Department of Health (DOH) and the city government’s Social Hygiene Clinic offered free human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) tests to the public.
World AIDS Day has been observed every Dec. 1 since 1988 to raise awareness and control the spread of HIV infection, as well as to mourn those who have died of the disease.
HIV is the virus that causes AIDS or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
The free tests started around 10 a.m. at the SM City Iloilo Northpoint in Mandurriao district.
Prior to the test, each client first underwent counseling.
Counseling was necessary “due to the negative implications,” according to Jenny Lyn Ruaya of the Western Visayas Medical Center’s (WVMC) HIV and AIDS Core Team in a report by the Philippine News Agency.
“During the counseling, too, we always emphasize that the test is confidential,” said Ruaya.
Results yesterday were made available 40 minutes after the tests.
Free HIV tests were also available at the WVMC, Family Planning Organization of the Philippines, and all district health centers in Iloilo City.
From January to June this year, Western Visayas recorded 312 HIV cases with 16 deaths.
The highest diagnosis was in June with 65 testing HIV positive, said Richard Chin Jr., HIV and sexually transmitted infection surveillance assistant of DOH’s Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit.
Majority of the cases were caused by unprotected sex and male having sex with male.
Of the figures, 61 cases were asymptomatic or did not show any symptom at all.
Only one female was among the newly-identified cases while the rest were males.
Most of the new cases belonged to the 15 years to 24 years, and 25 years to 34 years age brackets.
This year, three HIV cases involved mother-to-child transmission, said Chin.
Since the first HIV case was discovered in 1986, Western Visayas has had a total of 1,904 cases with 194 deaths. (PNA)
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