At least 29 AIDS patients died in 2003 in Japan because of delays in detecting HIV
The 29 patients died within one year of receiving treatment at medical institutions.
Last year, a record-high 976 HIV carriers were reported in the country. Owing to advances in medicine, the disease is not necessarily fatal if the infection is detected in its early stages. But the survey results indicate that such medical advances have not been fully exploited.
Previously, the number of people who died from the disease was reported at 19, according to statistics compiled by the government using data from medical institutions nationwide.
However, some experts have argued that the figure does not reflect the reality of the situation because the institutions are not required to report such deaths. As a result, the survey targeted 27 hospitals that offer specialized treatment for AIDS, of which 24 responded.
According to the survey results, the number of patients who died of pneumonia, cancer or other complications of AIDS totaled 34, of whom 23 were in Tokyo and five in Osaka and its vicinity.
Of the 34 patients, 30 were Japanese, while three were foreign residents and one person's nationality was unknown. The figures do not include AIDS patients who contracted the disease from contaminated blood products.
Of the 34 patients, 29 died within a year of being diagnosed with HIV. As they had already developed severe symptoms of the disease by the time of its discovery, treatment did not work well for them. One patient reportedly had difficulty breathing and visited a hospital, but died several days later. Five others could not continue receiving treatment due to the side effects of medicine and other reasons.
Fourteen patients in addition to the 29 reportedly showed severe symptoms. For example, one patient suffered encephalopathy causing paralysis of the limbs as a result of the disease, and another required intensive medical care.
In the survey, a number of medical institutions said many patients did not notice that they were infected with HIV until the symptoms appeared.
The disease was previously believed to be incurable, but a method of treatment using more than one kind of medicine was developed in the United States in 1996. The method reportedly has contributed to reducing the risk of death for HIV-infected patients if they are treated with it in the early stages.
Many medical professionals previously believed that HIV-infected patients died because their long battle with the disease caused the development of viruses resistant to treatment, or their adverse reactions to medicine forced doctors to discontinue treatment.
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Cel puþin 29 de pacienþi SIDA a murit în 2003 în Japonia, din cauza întârzieri în detectarea HIV, - At least 29 AIDS patients died in 2003 in Japan because of delays in detecting HIV - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate