Zhang Yu

JeniZhang13@163.com

SHENZHEN reported 1,803 new HIV infections in the first 10 months of this year, down 1.9 percent compared with the same period last year, according to a report released by the Shenzhen Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to mark the 31st World AIDS Day on Saturday.

The report showed that 91.4 percent of the new infections were found in men, with the average age of the newly infected being 34.5 years old.

Nearly 95.5 percent of the newly reported infections were transmitted through sex, with 51.9 percent being through same-sex intercourse. New cases related to intravenous drug use accounted for 3.9 percent.

The number of newly infected students this year is down from 17 to 14. Only three minors have been infected, which is a significant decrease from a year ago.

The youngest to contract the virus through sexual transmission this year was a 15-year-old girl from Guizhou Province who had been a left-behind child before coming to Shenzhen.

“It is easy for some left-behind children to go astray due to their lack of family care and guardianship. They are vulnerable to being taken advantage of by others,” said Yang Zhengrong, director of the AIDS prevention department at the center. Yang called for more attention to be paid to this group.

The report also showed that 17.1 percent of the newly infected patients are permanent residents of Shenzhen, a slight increase from previous years.

There were 11,868 HIV patients in the city as of Oct. 31, while 11,474 patients are now receiving free antiviral treatment from the government.

There are 214 HIV testing and counseling sites across the city and 1.64 million people were screened for HIV between January and October this year, up 12.9 percent from a year ago.