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Review
. 2019 Jun 13;19(1):747.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-019-7000-1.

HIV infection among men who have sex with men in Israel: a 35-year epidemiological and clinical overview, 1981-2015

D Chemtob  1   2 , Z Mor  3   4 , N Harel  5 , N Averick  5
Affiliations
Review

HIV infection among men who have sex with men in Israel: a 35-year epidemiological and clinical overview, 1981-2015

D Chemtob et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: This study is the first to describe major epidemiological trends and clinical characteristics among Israeli men who have sex with men (MSM), who are at a higher risk for HIV infection.

Methods: This retrospective study includes all individuals reported to the Israeli Ministry of Health with HIV and self-identified as MSM between 1981 and 2015. The incidence rates of HIV infection and AIDS-defining diseases were analyzed and Kaplan-Meier survival estimates were calculated from time of HIV infection notification to AIDS diagnosis and death across three consecutive periods representing antiretroviral treatment availability.

Results: The trend of increase in HIV incidence is similar to Western Europe, although Israeli rates are lower. Of 2052 HIV/AIDS Israeli MSM diagnosed during the follow-up, 296 (14.6%) developed AIDS. MSM constitute 28.4% of all HIV/AIDS cases and 41.5% of cases among men. Average times from HIV-notification until AIDS diagnosis were 15.5 [14.0-16.9], 16.0 [15.5-16.4], and 6.7 [6.7-6.8] years, within 1981-1996, 1997-2007, and 2008-2015, respectively. The HIV-incidence rate among Israeli MSM slightly declined from 2012, after peaking in 2011 at 6.2 per 100,000.

Conclusions: The recent reduction in HIV-incidence and in AIDS diagnoses among Israeli MSM is encouraging. Nevertheless, the disproportionate incidence of HIV among MSM requires sustained efforts to abate further infections.

Keywords: Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome – AIDS; Gay men; Human immunodeficiency virus – HIV; Injecting drug users - IDU; Israel; Men who have sex with men – MSM.

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Conflict of interest statement

DC is an Associate Editor of BMC Public Health. DC had no role in the editorial process of the manuscript.

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Newly-Diagnosed HIV Cases among MSM* Israeli citizens, and their proportion out of all male HIV cases, Israel, 1981–2015. *MSM – Men Having Sex with Men
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Newly-diagnosed HIV cases among MSM* per 100,000 men, 2006–2015. *MSM – Men having Sex with Men
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
IQR at notification age, by year of (a) HIV diagnosis and (b) AIDS diagnosis, Israel 1981–2015
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Cumulative survival probabilities of (a) AIDS diagnosis (b) all-cause mortality(c) and AIDS-related mortality, among Israeli MSM* patients diagnosed with HIV, according to treatment periods
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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