HIV prevalence in East Asian countries is quite low compared to those found in other continents, but the populations of these nations are so large that low prevalence often masks large numbers of people living with HIV. China has by far the largest epidemic in the region. The virus has spread to all of China’s provinces. IV drug use and sex workers currently play a large role in the spread across the nation, up to half of drug injectors testing positive for HIV in some provinces. China has a long history with HIV as a decade ago many rural people were infected when they sold blood plasma to supplement their meager incomes.
Data amongst blood donors in Japan show that HIV prevalence has risen steadily among male blood donors but has remained stable among women. This would indicate that HIV transmission is occurring mainly amongst MSM. There were 340 newly-reported HIV cases among Japanese MSM in 2003, which was over three times the number of reported infections among heterosexual men. There has been a rapid increase in the annual number of HIV infections attributed to homosexuality.
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