Ho, Dec. 16, GNA - A total of 3,309 out of 75,508 people, who were screened for HIV in the Volta Region between January and October this year, have tested positive.
This represents a 4.38 per cent increase over 2008 figure. The year 2008 saw 2,980 positive cases out of 71,270 people, who were screened. These were contained in a report obtained from the Regional Directorate of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) by the Ghana News Agency on Wednesday. The report said out of the total positive cases from January to October 2009, 950 were male and 2,359 were female. In 2008, 2,138 female were said to have tested positive as against 842 male.
The report, which was compiled by Mr Joseph Kwami Degley, Regional Coordinator of HIV AIDS and Tuberculosis for the GHS, said 392 pregnant women tested positive for period under review. It said of the pregnant women, 319 were attending Ante-Natal Clinic (ANC) and receiving Nevirapine, a drug meant to prevent mother-to-child transmission of the disease.
Mr Degley advised the pregnant women especially those who have tested HIV positive to always attend ANC in order to protect their unborn babies. He observed that stigmatization was gradually reducing as more people were testing to know their status.
