HIV Outbreak Contained

Health officials in West Virginia say they were able to contain an HIV outbreak in the southern part of the state by quickly identifying infected people and getting them into treatment. The Gazette-Mail quotes Dr. Rahul Gupta of the state’s Bureau for Public Health in a report as saying the outbreak involved people from 15 counties. Health officials believe the virus was mostly spread by sexual contact between males; only a few of the patients reported intravenous drug use. As of last week, Gupta said, 60 new HIV cases were reported statewide. There were 68 cases in 2015; 77 in 2014; 98 in 2013; and 79 in 2012. The state also contacted the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for assistance.