Young adults form majority of new HIV cases in Malaysia
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Malaysia's health minister said 75 per cent of the HIV cases reported in the country involved individuals aged between 20 and 39.
PHOTO: AFP
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KUALA LUMPUR – Young adults made up the majority of new HIV cases reported in Malaysia in 2024, said Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Datuk Seri Dzulkefly said 75 per cent of the cases involved individuals aged between 20 and 39, and added that the pattern of HIV transmission in the country has shifted significantly over the years.
He said this shift is a move from infections caused by sharing drug needles to HIV being spread through sexual contact.
“In 2024, sexual transmission accounted for 96 per cent of all HIV cases. Of these, 64 per cent involved homosexual or bisexual contact, while 32 per cent were heterosexual,” he said in a written reply to Mr Tan Kok Wai in Parliament.
Dr Dzulkefly reported a total of 3,185 new HIV cases in 2024, with a notification rate of 9.4 per 100,000 people. Men accounted for 90 per cent of the cases, while women made up 10 per cent.
“This shows a change compared with the 1990s, when almost all cases consisted of 99 per cent of men and only 1 per cent were women,” he said.
While the overall number of new HIV and Aids cases in Malaysia dropped by 50 per cent between 2000 and 2009, the decline has slowed in recent years – with only a 27 per cent decrease recorded from 2010 to 2024. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
