HIV underdiagnosed in Poland, experts alarm
PR dla Zagranicy
Alicja Baczyńska
24.11.2015 18:59
No more than ten percent of Poles have run an HIV test, but the number of people affected by the condition continues to grow in the country.
Photo: Wikipedia Commons
While some 20,000 people have been diagnosed HIV-positive, up to 35,000 Poles could be infected with the virus that causes AIDS – with many unconsciously passing it on to their sexual partners.
As Professor Andrzej Horban, national consultant in the field of contagious diseases, underlines, 80 percent of those infected with the virus are male. HIV prevalence is growing particularly among homosexual men, but also Poles aged over 50, who often engage in sexual intercourse without protection.
The European HIV Testing Week is now underway in Poland, where anonymous free testing for the sexually transmitted disease is made available at health facilities nationwide for longer hours until 27 November. (aba/rk)
Source: PAP, onet.pl