Rise in HIV diagnoses in UK puts goal of ending transmission by 2030 in “jeopardy”
latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) have shown a significant rise in new diagnoses between 2022 and 2023.“The number of HIV diagnoses first made in England increased by 15% from 2,451 in 2022 to 2,810 in 2023,” says the agency.The increase was not equal across all communities.
Although there was a rise of 7% in gay men, there was a 36% rise in straight men and a 30% rise in straight women.Around 60% of new diagnoses in the UK were believed to be down to men-women sexual encounters.Among gay men, a third of new diagnoses were in ethnic minority men (up from 26% in 2022).The agency also reported a large rise in HIV diagnoses in people relocating to the UK who were previously diagnosed abroad.“When including those first diagnosed abroad, there were 6,008 HIV diagnoses in England in 2023, an increase of 51% from 3,975 in 2022.”Around 40% of those diagnosed with HIV discovered their status at a late stage.
This is after the virus had begun to damage their immune system.The number of people getting an HIV test is still slightly below pre-pandemic levels.
By contrast, in 2022, England launched an opt-out program to test for HIV in hospital emergency departments. It is not yet known how this policy may have contributed to the increase in HIV diagnoses.
