Lothian mums-to-be most likely to be infected with HIV

Published on Friday 24 April 2009 09:52

A PREGNANT woman in the Lothians is more likely to be HIV-positive than in any other place in Scotland, figures have shown.

In Health Protection Scotland's quarterly update on the infection, it showed that 19.43 in every 10,000 expectant females had HIV.

It means ten women in all had the disease during 2008 while pregnant, with seven knowing prior to birth that they were positive.

The Lothians continue to be the capital of HIV in Scotland, with more than 2200 cases – mostly gay men.

This is despite endless awareness campaigns and safe sex messages by NHS Lothian and various charities.

The latest figures show the tide may be turning slightly, with only 22 new cases between January and March this year, fewer than half the number in Glasgow.

And in that same time period, no-one has reported their HIV becoming AIDS.

The weekly infection statistics also revealed that there were 107 cases of chickenpox last week, 26 instances of food poisoning, one of measles, two of mumps and one incident of scarlet fever.