ISLAMABAD, April 24: Lack of awareness about HIV/Aids (Human Immuno-deficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) among the high-risk groups is making the fight against the disease difficult, doctors believe.

The National Programme Manager of the Aids Control Programme, Dr Asma Bokhari, told Dawn, that the high-risk groups were not aware of the dangers of HIV/Aids because they were from marginalized segments of the population and had limited access to information.

According to the Ministry of Health, the number of HIV- positive/Aids cases reported is 3,933. But only about 618 (or 17.7 per cent) of these have been registered with the nine treatment centres as full-blown cases.

The problem is believed to be much bigger than is generally imagined. Other estimates reveal that between 80,000 and 140,000 people in the country are infected —and these rates could spiral up because of the trend of under-reporting of cases.

A baseline study conducted by Punjab Aids Control Programme, in eight districts of the province, about awareness levels among the high-risk groups, revealed extremely low levels of awareness about HIV/Aids.

The study, conducted in Rawalpindi, Lahore, Sialkot, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Bahawalpur and Multan, said less than 1% of the respondents were aware that the HIV/Aids could be transmitted from a mother to her child or through contact with a wound.

The respondents’ knowledge about unsafe sexual intercourse, use of second-hand needles and blood transfusions was also poor. Only 4% were aware that condoms could be an effective means of protection against HIV/Aids but 28.5% knew of two nearby sites where these were distributed free.

Among the respondents, 62% had never heard about sexually- transmitted diseases but 75% believed that extra-marital sex was common in society.