About 370,000 Russians are found HIV positive during 2006 and, among them, over 1,000 children carried the infection from their mothers who were either suffering from full-blown AIDS or HIV positive, the federal health service has said.
Epidemiologist Guennadi Onitshenko said Tuesday an additional 16,000 children born of AIDS carrier parents have not developed symptoms yet, but are under observation.The report published in January 2007 said most of the people classified seropositive were in the regions of Murmansk, Daguestan, Lipets and Rostov.
The territories of Riazan, Karelia, Vologodsk, Novgorod and Krasnodarsk had seen a reduction in the number of AIDS/HIV cases, the report said.
Expert Elena Pravidlo said, besides financial issues, the major problem is indifferent publicity, cantering on attacking free sex as an immoral act, rather than a focus on protection.
Specialist Mijail Rukavishnikov said a vigorous anti-AIDS campaign could not take off because of the absence of a well-coordinated programme.
Source-IANS
SRM
