Thimphu, July 20 (IANS) With about five new HIV-positive cases detected every month in Bhutan, the country recorded 34 more HIV-positive cases between December last and June this year, taking the total number of detected cases to 380.
Of the 34 new cases, 18 are male and the remaining females. Two are minors, aged two and three years, according to Bhutan’s health ministry.
A majority of them were adults within the productive age group of 20 to 39 years, while seven were aged between 40 and 49 years, the Himalayan nation’s national newspaper Kuensel reported.
Records show that since 2006 about 25 new cases were detected every year, while in the last three years the average yearly detection stood at about 42 cases.
Unlike countries where female are disproportionately affected, health officials said the situation was different in Bhutan.
Of the total 380 cases detected, 191 were males and 189 females.