Roundup: 212 Cambodians infected in HIV outbreak, use of unsterilized medical tools likely cause of mass transmission

At least 212 villagers have now infected with HIV in a remote Roka commune in northwest Cambodia' s Battambang province, the Cambodian Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a joint statement on Saturday.

The use of unsterilized medical tools by an unlicensed medical practitioner was likely to cause the mass transmission. "From Dec. 8 to 31, 2014, a total of 1,940 people from Roka commune voluntarily undertook HIV testing and counseling and 212 people tested positive for HIV," said the joint statement. "Among the 212 HIV carriers, 39 people are aged below 14 years old, 127 people are between 15 and 59 years old and 46 are aged 60 years old or older."

The statement said among the people who tested HIV positive, 172 people, or 82 percent, are from Roka village.

On Dec. 18, Cambodia established an investigation team, comprised of experts from the Cambodian Ministry of Health, WHO, the U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, UNAIDS, and Pasteur Institute in Cambodia, to look into the outbreak.

The joint statement said the probe into the origins of the HIV cluster included a case and control study. "The study showed that the percentage of people that reported receiving an injection or intravenous infusion as part of their health treatment was significantly higher among the people who tested positive for HIV than the people who were HIV negative," it said.

It added that the study also looked at other risk factors for HIV, such as unprotected sex and injecting drug use, and found no significant differences between the two groups.

Cambodian Minister of Health Mam Bunheng reminded the health authorities of the need to strictly follow the ministry's protocols. "The Ministry of Health is ensuring health facilities follow universal precautions and use clean and sterile equipment, as well as working on raising awareness of safe injection practices and overall HIV prevention among the public," he said. "We have reinforced the implementation of the ministry policy to stop unlicensed medical practices."

Dongil Ahn, representative of WHO-Cambodia, said the rapid action by the Ministry of Health has helped prevent the infection from continuing to spread. "There is a need to strengthen the regulatory framework for the private and informal health sector in order to ensure that health care is responsive, safe and of high quality," he said.

The authorities are making all efforts to respond effectively to the needs of people who have recently found out that they are HIV positive, the statement said, adding that HIV treatment and care services are available to residents of Roka commune, in addition to the existing antiretroviral therapy services available at the Provincial Referral Hospital.

The statement said a total of 161 people were registered for HIV care services and 78 started received antiretroviral drugs.

Marie-Odile Emond, UNAIDS country director for Cambodia, said Cambodia has a strong HIV community care and support system, which has now been mobilized to provide dedicated community outreach services for every household in the communities affected. "We will continue working closely with all partners to expand HIV prevention, treatment and care services and strengthen the surveillance systems to ensure that this incident does not happen again," she said.

Residents in Roka commune have flocked to have their blood tested for HIV since Dec. 8 after a 74-year-old man, who tested positive for the virus in November, alerted others who used to receive medical treatment from an unlicensed doctor Yem Chrin to get tested.

Roka commune's deputy chief Soeum Chhom said villagers have blamed the outbreak on Yem Chrin, 56, who allegedly used unsterilized needles and reused syringes on patients.

The Battambang Provincial Court has charged the suspected doctor, who was arrested on Dec. 17, with "murder with cruel act", which could face life imprisonment if convicted.

Cambodia has seen a success in reducing HIV infection rate over the last decade.

The prevalence rate of HIV infection steadily declined to 0.4 percent among the general adult population in 2014 from 2.5 percent in 1998, according the National AIDS Authority.

Currently, the Southeast Asian nation has some 74,000 people living with the virus. Endi