More HIV cases being recorded among 17-25 yr-olds in SVG

By Admin. Updated 2:01 p.m., Friday, December 1, 2023, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).

“It’s as if they’ve forgotten this thing exists,” she said.

More HIV cases are being recorded among persons aged 17-25 in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Infectious Diseases Specialist in the Ministry of Health, Wellness, and Environment – Dr. Jose Davy made the disclosure on the radio today (December 1).

December 1st is being observed as World AIDS Day.

Dr. Davy said: “We’re now seeing a lot of younger persons coming forward and testing positive and that’s the age group 17-25. We’ve see a few cases of those”.

“So, it’s as if they’ve forgotten this thing exists,” she added.

“So, people are forgetting that they have to know what they are doing, in a sense. [If] “you’re going to have sex, you need to know the status of your partner,” she said.

“If you don’t know the status of your partner in that instance, you’re going to have to use a condom,” she added.

Dr. Davy also said that this country – St. Vincent and the Grenadines records an average of 35 new HIV cases each year.

Dr. Davy said that “every year, we get at least between the late twenties and the maximum in the fifties per year,” referring to the number of HIV cases recorded.

“For instance, last year, we had 54 cases , but generally, it staggers around 35 cases per year,” she said.

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She said that currently, “we have in care some 430 persons are receiving anti retroviral therapy”.

She said the number of new infections is significant and needs to come down.

“Although we would be termed a low burden, the Caribbean still has the second highest HIV infection rate on what we call prevalence, second only to SubSaharan Africa,” she said.

“So, we need these numbers to come down,” she added.

The infectious disease specialist advised persons to check their status and to practice safe sex.

“When I’m talking HIV, I would like to emphasize all other sexually transmitted diseases because if you’re exposed to one then it increases your risk for others,” she said.