- HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong HIV/AIDS patients hide
their conditions from their families, partners or spouses as long as they
can, a survey this week showed.
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- The study released by Chinese University of Hong Kong
ahead of Friday's World AIDS Day found that less than 10 percent of HIV/AIDS
sufferers disclose their status to their families.
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- While 55 percent of the 289 people with HIV/AIDS interviewed
are sexually active, many keep their partners in the dark.
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- A quarter of married respondents hide their infection
or illness from their spouses while three quarters of those who co-habit
say nothing to their partners.
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- But doctors said this does not necessarily put others
at risk.
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- ``It is fine for them to be sexually active provided
they are engaged in protected sex,'' a consultant to the government's AIDS'
unit, Dr Lee Shui-shan, told Reuters by telephone.
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- One hundred and thirty-two people were tested positive
with HIV and 54 were confirmed to have AIDS during the first three quarters
of this year, according to the latest government figures.
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- HIV is the virus that leads to AIDS.
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- HIV prevalence in Hong Kong, with a total of 1,491 reported
HIV infections and 487 confirmed AIDS cases, fares relatively well compared
with the rest of Asia.
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- Hong Kong, with about seven million people, has more
than double the population of Singapore but has half the number of HIV/AIDS
patients than the city state.
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- Singapore was ranked 10th by the United Nations among
Asia-Pacific countries for HIV prevalence in 1999.
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- Cambodia came top of the list with 210,000 reported HIV/AIDS
cases, followed by Thailand with 740,000 and Myanmar third with 510,000.
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- In Hong Kong, discrimination remains the biggest hurdle
for HIV patients to be honest with others about their health, the latest
survey showed.
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- A noticeable proportion felt marginalised by family members
and others felt discriminated because of the media's negative portrayal,
the report said.
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- Universal HIV screening is in the pipeline for pregnant
women in Hong Kong. The scheme is likely to be introduced by next year.
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