Number of HIV, AIDS patients surpasses 10,000 in Korea

The number of human immunodeficiency virus infections and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome patients surpassed 10,000 for the first time in South Korea last year, the health authorities said Friday.

A total of 10,502 people tested positive for HIV and were diagnosed with AIDS in 2015, up from 9,615 tallied in 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.

The figure represents a net increase of accumulative records of HIV infections and AIDS patients on a yearly basis, with the number of deaths taken off.

It is the first time that the figure topped the 10,000 mark since 1985 when the first HIV-positive person was reported in the country.

Out of the total, 92.7 percent of them are male, while those in their 40s accounted for nearly 30 percent.

The CDCP said a combined 1,152 new HIV infections and AIDS patients were added to the number last year, with 1,018 of them South Korean nationals. (Yonhap)