Blood-Borne Viruses
This report was produced in collaboration with Eastern Region Public Health Observatory, the Eastern Cancer Registration and Information Centre, and colleagues in the NHS.
HIV
Over the past 10 years the number of individuals newly diagnosed with HIV in the East of England rose quite dramatically until 2002 when numbers began to stabilise. The proportion of new diagnoses which were heterosexually acquired has grown from 55% to 73%. Over the same time period the proportion attributed to MSM has declined (36% to 23%).
There are differences in the trends over time within prevention groups depending on whether the infection was probably acquired within the United Kingdom or abroad. In 2003, 69% of new diagnoses were probably acquired heterosexually overseas compared to just 45% in 2007. In the past 10 years the number of individuals resident in the East of England region accessing HIV related care has increased by 573%. During 2007, the uptake of testing in GUM clinics in the East of England region was over 70%, exceeding the national target (60%) set for the end of 2007.
The proportion of diagnoses that are among females almost doubled between 1999 and 2002, from 31% to 57%. Screening aimed at reducing mother to child transmission may account for much of this increase. During 2007, the uptake of HIV testing by women in antenatal care was 94%, exceeding the national target of 90%.
The overall prevalence of diagnosed infection among East of England residents was 65 per 100,000 - lower than the overall figure for the UK, however there was wide variation across the region by Primary Care Trust, from 286 per 100,000 in Luton to just 32 per 100,000 in Suffolk.
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