Fact Sheet:

HIV/AIDS in Italy Population: 60,221.2111 (2009) HIV/AIDS related statistics2 HIV positive cases in Italy Number of people living with HIV: 143,000 – 165,0003 Number of people diagnosed with AIDS: 22,000

Progress of HIV infection in Italy in 1990 and 2010

1990

2010

New HIV infections

13,000 – 16,250

New HIV infections

3,500 – 4,300

Main transmission mode:

IDU (injecting drug use): 58,1%

Main transmission mode:

sexual transmission (both heterosexual and homosexual): 80,1%

Average age

29

Average age

38

New HIV infections: • During the last few years the incidence of new HIV infections has been stable with about 4,000 new infections per year.

1 Font World Bank, accessed May 2011 2 ISS data collection 2010 3 The analysis of the new HIV infections is active in 16 Italian regions (72,3% population)

• 60% of new HIV diagnoses happen when the stage of the disease is advanced and the immune system is already compromised (lymphocytes number CD4 < 200 cell/mm3), meaning that just one third of HIV positive people can start the ART in time. • One fourth of people who are HIV positive do not know their status. AIDS cases in Italy • From 1982 to 2009 61,537 AIDS cases were diagnosed and 40,000 people had died of the disease. Since 1996, thanks to ART, the number of AIDS case in Italy is consistently diminishing. • New AIDS cases in 2009: ~1,200 (compared to 5,655 back in 1995, the year with the peak number of AIDS diagnoses in Italy) • Average age: 43 years (35 in 1995). HIV/AIDS and Young People (15-24 years)4 • Of all of the AIDS cases registered in Italy from 1982 to 2009, 4.3% (2,666) affected young people from 15 to 24 years. The proportion has gone down from 2.2% at the end of the ’80 to 0.7% (19 cases) in 2009. • Mirroring the general trend, 61% discover their HIV positive status late, at the moment of AIDS diagnosis. 73.1% of young people with a late diagnosis have been infected through unprotected sexual intercourse (26.2% homosexual intercourse, 45.2% heterosexual intercourse). • Of all new HIV diagnoses, 14.5% affect the 15-24 age group; the average age is 22 and this data has been constant through the years. • This data shows that the number of young people infected by HIV/AIDS has decreased since the 1980s and that sexual intercourse is the main transmission mode. It is worrying that a significant percentage of young people have unprotected intercourse and that more than half of HIV positive young people are not aware of their HIV status until their AIDS diagnosis. HIV/AIDS and Women • 22.7% (13,959) of diagnosed AIDS cases in Italy from 1982 to 2009 were women. • 41.7% of women with AIDS were infected via injecting drug use and 39.1% via sexual intercourse, this last percentage grew 6.7 times from 1986 to 2009. • 20% of women infected by sexual intercourse knew their partner was HIV positive. • From 1982 to 2009 716 cases of mother-to-child transmission were registered. HIV Treatment in Italy Today, treatment of HIV is almost fully integrated into the general system of health care in Italy. Basic rights like access to testing, treatment and care, as well as access to information are available. The government provides nation-wide, free-of-cost HIV treatment and care. In July 2010 a ‘’Guide Line on ART use’’ commissioned by the

4 Notiziario ISS, Volum 23, Number 12, December 2010 Fonte: Sintesi dei dati epidemiologici dell'HIV/AIDS in Italia 2010 - Istituto Superiore di Sanità - Centro Operativo AIDS

Italian Ministry of Health was published by the National Centre of AIDS at the Istituto Superiore Sanità (CNAIDS-ISS)5. HIV Prevention in Italy The main programmes on HIV prevention in Italy have focused primarily on promoting HIV testing and comprehensive information about HIV transmission and prevention especially towards young people and immigrants. In addition to campaigns and programmes provided by the Italian government, non-governmental organizations play a major role in HIV prevention. The “Commissione Nazionale AIDS”6 and the “Consulta delle Associazioni per la Lotta all’AIDS”7 unite all the NGOs working in the HIV/AIDS field and work as a consultative agency for the Ministry of Health. A free help-line (the Telefono Verde) has been set up by the Ministry of Health to answer all the questions regarding the epidemic. Additional Information and Resources Ministero della Salute – HIV and AIDS: http://www.salute.gov.it/hiv/hiv.jsp Official HIV/AIDS page of the Italian Ministry of Health Istituto Superiore di Sanità – Centro Nazionale AIDS: http://www.iss.it/aids/ National AIDS Centre of the ISS L.I.L.A. – Lega Italiana per la Lotta all’AIDS: http://www.lila.it/ non-profit HIV/AIDS federation of 15 associations (local units) promoting prevention,

harm reductions policies and human rights NADIR onlus: http://www.nadironlus.org/ Patient Based HIV Treatment Group promoting information, access to treatment and

involvement for PLHIV NPS onlus: http://npsitalia.net/ Network of PLHIV promoting information and psico-social support Anlaids – Associazione Nazionale AIDS: www.anlaids.org Ngo funding HIV/AIDS related research and promoting information and prevention Arcigay: www.arcigay.it/ Ngo for LGBT rights highly active in fighting stigma related to HIV/AIDS and

promoting prevention

5 Full document available here: http://www.salute.gov.it/imgs/C_17_pubblicazioni_1301_allegato.pdf 6 http://www.salute.gov.it/hiv/paginaDettaglioHiv.jsp?id=199&menu=commissione 7 http://www.salute.gov.it/hiv/paginaDettaglioHiv.jsp?id=200&menu=consulta