Alarming increase in reported HIV cases from Larkana, Pakistan: a matter of serious concern

Seven years ago in this journal s editorial of special supplement on HIV/AIDS Research in 2006 Vermund and colleagues expressed concern over the rising trend of HIV among injection drug users (IDUs). The editorial was titled, HIV/AIDS in Pakistan: Has the explosion begun? The last national surveillance round was conducted in 2011 and its results indicated a surge in HIV infection among IDUs and hijra sex workers. The national prevalence of HIV was 37.8% (95% CI: 37.3%, 38.3%) among IDUs and 7.2% (95% CI: 6.8%, 7.5%) among hijra sex workers.2 Experts believe that the data and pattern of HIV epidemic in Pakistan suggest that this country will not have a generalized epidemic like several countries in Sub Saharan Africa however in the concentrated phase of the epidemic the trend will continue to rise among certain high risk groups.