Health Ministry: 60,000 Iranians Unaware of Their HIV/AIDS Status

Abbas Sadaqat, head of the AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases control department at the Ministry of Health, noted that there are between 80,000 to 90,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in Iran, with 60,000 of them possibly unaware of their condition. According to a report on May 18, 2023, by the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), Sadaqat stated, "By the end of fall 2014, approximately 29,000 cases had been identified and registered, receiving free and confidential care and treatment programs." He added, "Active disease detection in the general population is not feasible in any society, but mathematical models can estimate the number of infected individuals in the country. Our biggest problem is that there may be around 60,000 individuals who are unaware of their health status." The age group most affected is between 20 to 30 years. Sadaqat mentioned that about 46% of those infected fall within the 25 to 34 age range. Assuming it takes four to five years for individuals to engage in risky behavior, become aware of their condition, and decide to seek help, it can be inferred that the average age of infection in 46% of registered cases is between 20 and 30 years. He also stated that data from 2013 indicated that approximately 45% of infections were due to shared needle use among drug users, while about 36% were due to unprotected sexual relations. This indicates that in 2013, over one-third of infections, approximately 40%, were attributed to unprotected sexual activity. Sadaqat also mentioned that mobile teams for HIV/AIDS awareness and access to testing systems will be launched this year in Iran. He emphasized that nearly half of the country's population is considered adolescents and youth, a demographic that is highly vulnerable, making it crucial to empower young people to protect themselves against risky behaviors. Last year, Ali Akbar Siari, Iran's Deputy Minister of Health, estimated that 85,000 people in Iran might be infected with the HIV virus. Siari pointed out that 28,633 cases had been registered, noting that HIV infection among injecting drug users had surpassed a crisis level and that among women with risky sexual behaviors, it was also at a crisis stage. He remarked, "While the global trend of HIV infections is decreasing, this figure is increasing in the Eastern Mediterranean region and Iran."