title: HIV infection in England and Wales: a changing pattern.
abstract: Of 32,983 specimens from 307 sources in England and Wales tested in the Virus Reference Laboratory for anti-HIV between 1984 and 1987, 6491 (20%) were positive. Ninety-five per cent of the positive subjects were male and 44% of them were from three London genito-urinary medicine clinics. In 1987 the numbers of newly diagnosed HIV infections decreased in homosexual men and haemophiliacs and increased in injecting drug abusers; 148/1199 (12%) of all the positive findings in 1987 were in females. Between 1984 and 1987 the proportion of anti-HIV positive individuals who were asymptomatic fell by nearly 10% and the proportion with AIDS/ARC rose by nearly 10%. Of the requests leading to positive results 1280 (20%) were recognized as duplicates of previous positive results, while for 34% of the requests no clinical information was provided. These deficiencies in the data compromise HIV surveillance based on diagnostic testing, and supplementary bias-free data are needed.
authors.affiliation: PHLS Virus Reference Laboratory, Central Public Health Laboratory, London.
authors.forename: H L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: P P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Mortimer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D004739:England; D005260:Female; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014852:Wales