[READ ALSO: Congress halted new law on HIV, viral hepatitis, and STIs: it lost its parliamentary status] It is estimated that 122,000 people in the country have the virus, although 30% of them are unaware of their status. Of those who know their diagnosis, 81% are receiving treatment, and most of them are treated in the public health system. The male-to-female ratio is 2.4 to 1: for every two men with HIV, there is one woman with the virus. And among men, the number is also growing: one in four new HIV diagnoses occurs in men aged 20 to 35 who have unprotected sex with men.

Women over 40

“This data confirms that we not only need to maintain a proactive approach to policies regarding access to diagnosis and prevention, but also to be attentive to the changes that an epidemic like HIV brings to modern populations. We see how, once again, men, especially younger, gay, and bisexual men, continue to lead in infection cases, and how women over 40 are beginning to have a relevance they haven't had until now in the history of the epidemic,” stated Sergio Maulen, Director of AIDS and STIs at the Ministry of Health of Argentina.

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Furthermore, other data included in the bulletin indicate that in our country, 35% of HIV diagnoses are considered late, meaning they are made at an advanced stage of infection when the virus has already weakened the body's defenses. This situation affects men more than men: while these diagnoses occur in 30% of cases in women, in men that number represents 37.5%.

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Some data

-It is estimated that around 122,000 people live with HIV in Argentina. Of these, 70% know their positive diagnosis, while the remaining 30% are unaware of it. -The main route of HIV transmission is unprotected sex (98%). Among men, 42.2% acquired the infection through heterosexual contact, while 56% acquired it through contact with another man. -Of every 100 babies born to mothers with HIV, five acquire the infection. -There are 69,200 people receiving antiretroviral treatment. Of these, 70% are treated in the public health system. -10% of people diagnosed with the virus had tested negative the previous year. -21% of women with HIV are diagnosed after the age of 45. -There are more than 555 HIV prevention, counseling and testing centers in the country and 39 friendly clinics or inclusive health care spaces/services for people of diverse sexual orientations operating throughout the country.]]>