Abstract
As of July 3, 2005, the total number of HIV-infected patients in Japan came to 11,664. However, the actual figure was estimated to be several times as large as the official number. During the previous year 1,165 HIV-positive patients were newly registered. It was the largest ever recorded in one year. There is every indication that HIV infection is spreading outward from major metropolitan areas to suburban and rural parts of the nation. By mode of transmission, heterosexual contacts account for the largest number amongst the cases documented. In recent years, homosexual transmission has increased. In view of the rapidity with which HIV infection has spread abroad, it is urgently necessary for Japan to take effective measures against the virus, because this nation has several factors favorable for the spread of HIV disease. Nevertheless, the public is yet to be provided fully with correct information about HIV infection/AIDS. To implement prophylactic programs effectively, we, health care providers, must endeavor to diffuse the knowledge of the disease. HIV-infection, if diagnosed in an early stage before it develops into AIDS, has now been reduced to a chronic illness manageable with anti-HIV drugs. Therefore, early diagnosis by means of HIV screening has become more important than ever. Consequently, the establishment of a screening system available easily is essential not only from the viewpoint of treatment but also from a prophylactic perspective because safe-sex practices are expected to be established with public understanding of the nature of HIV deepened. Healthcare professionals have still plenty of catching-up to do in terms of arresting the spread of HIV infection.
