Hassan and Arsikere have 794 and 534 persons infected with HIV respectively. According to Dr Poornima of ART Centre in Hassan, 99 per cent of the persons have been affected due to unprotected sex. Even though a majority of the people know about AIDS, they neglect the repeated warnings given by doctors, leaving them exposed to the possibility of getting infected.
While every year on World AIDS Day several government organisations and various private agencies undertake rallies to improve awareness among people, the effect is yet to make its impact among the people.
The district also has 182 children, who have been infected due to HIV. Obtaining accurate statistics of the total number of people infected by HIV is impossible as many of them fail to report due to the stigma attached to the disease. The district has a total of 4,150 persons infected with HIV based on the number of people availing treatment at ART Centres.
Doctors said 60 per cent of the infected are in the age group of 20 to 45 years, 15 to 20 per cent are in the 45 to 70 year age group.
However, all is not lost for those infected with HIV, doctors say. Citing examples of a girl pursuing here B Sc in a college in Hassan and a 23-year-old man working in Channarayapatna, doctors said that availing treatment can help HIV infected live like normal people.
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