More than142,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in Europe in 2014, the highest number of newly diagnosed infections on the continent since reporting began in the 1980s, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Thursday.
The report from WHO's Regional Office for Europe and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) attributed the increase primarily to Eastern Europe, where new infections have more than doubled in the past 10 years. The region includes Russia, Ukraine and 13 other countries in Central Asia and the Transcaucasus, reports the Independent.
"Heterosexual transmission is responsible for the increase in eastern Europe, and transmission through drug injection remains substantial," the joint statement by the WHO and ECDC said.
However, in the European Union and the European Economic Area, sex between men is still the most common way for the virus to spread.
"HIV diagnosis among men who have sex with men have been rising at an alarming rate, from 30 percent in 2005 to 42 percent in 2014, with increases in all but six EU and EEA countries," WHO said.
ECDC acting director Andrea Ammon advised Europe to "scale up its efforts to reach out to this group. This includes looking at new strategies such as pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV and access to care for EU citizens residing in other EU countries."
WHO Regional Director Zsuzsanna Jakab said refugees traveling across Europe are at a high risk for contracting the virus upon arriving in Europe.
"Refugees and migrants remain a priority for HIV prevention and care," said Jakab. "Conflict and disasters should not affect access to HIV services for people living with HIV. When refugees and migrants are victims of social exclusion in receiving countries, they are at greater risk of HIV infection, and this may lead them to engage in risky behavior, increasing their risk for infection. This risk is exacerbated by inadequate access to HIV services and fear of being stigmatized. We at WHO urge all countries in Europe to offer HIV prevention, testing and treatment services to all refugees and migrants, irrespective of their legal status. This is also the safest way to protect the resident population from HIV infection."
Meanwhile, a new report from UNAIDS shows that global HIV infections dropped to the lowest levels in 15 years. There were 2 million new infections in 2014-15, compared to 3.1 million people who were diagnosed in 2000, reported Time.
