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HIV in the UK: facts and statistics

HIV is the fastest growing serious health condition in the UK. It's estimated that 70,000 people are living with HIV, a third of whom are undiagnosed.

Map of UK

Injecting drug users (IDU)

The transmission of HIV through sharing equipment for injecting drugs has remained at relatively low levels in the UK. This is due primarily to needle exchange programmes and other harm reduction programmes, such as methadone maintenance.

In 2006, people contracting HIV this way accounted for approximately 2.4% of the total cases of HIV that were diagnosed.

Statistics

In 2006, there were an estimated 2,700 injecting drug users aged 15 to 59 living with HIV, with 39% unaware they had the virus. Among this group:

  • There have been 4,662 known cases from the beginning of the epidemic through to the end of 2006, which is 5.4% of all cases in the UK
  • Infection with HIV is three times as common among men as among women
  • In the UK, HIV diagnoses amongst IDUs have remained at a fairly low rate since the beginning of the epidemic