North America and Western Europe

North America and Western Europe

In North America and Western Europe (as in the USA, see graphic) the HIV initially affected the homosexual population and injecting drug addicts. As long ago as the 1980s, the HIV epidemic was insidiously spreading from these key groups into the heterosexual population.

Nevertheless, the rate (percentage of HIV infections within a risk group) among homosexuals and injecting drug addicts is still 30 to 40 times higher than among heterosexuals.

In most western countries, new infections among homosexuals have increased strongly again in the last ten years. On the other hand, the number of new infections among injecting drug addicts fell sharply, e.g. in Switzerland from the most common transmission path at the start of the 90s to 4% of new infections in 2008.