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The 1998 report of the Unlinked Anonymous Surveys Group, published today, shows that one-third of adults with HIV in the UK are unaware of their infection. The survey also found:

30,000 people are estimated to be living with HIV in the UK, 10,000 of them undiagnosed

28% of gay men with HIV infection remain undiagnosed

At least 1,000 new infections are occurring each year among gay men

The sharing of needles and syringes among drug users who had injected in the previous month increased from around 17% in 1997 to 32% in 1998. The level of sharing had changed little between 1992 and 1997.

The Unlinked Anonymous HIV prevalence survey tests blood samples provided in genitourinary medicine clinics, hospitals, antenatal units and services for drug users to establish the levels of HIV infection in different population groups. The survey has been collecting data on UK trends since 1990.

Reference

Prevalence of HIV in the United Kingdom 1998: Summary report from the Unlinked Anonymous Surveys Steering Group, Department of Health, 1999.

Keith Alcorn

Keith Alcorn

Editorial Consultant

Keith joined the editorial team of the National AIDS Manual (NAM) in 1991, launched the aidsmap website in 1998 and was the Senior Editor of NAM and aidsmap until 2018. He now contributes news and conference reports as a freelancer.