introduction

Western Europe, globally considered one of the most advanced and sophisticated regions, is now experiencing the blunt of the epidemic that is ravaging the world-HIV/AIDS. In the year 2003, UNAIDS approximated that 600,000 people in the region were infected with the virus. And still startling was the nascent knowledge that it was no longer a gay man's disease, as AIDS contraction in heterosexual individuals increased dramatically to a number that depicts 60% of those with the virus. The five primary countries that comprise the region are each undergoing severe crisis situations in trying to rectify their quandaries. Over 130,000 French citizens are infected, along with 120,000 Spaniards, 95,000 Italians, 65,000 Portuguese, and anywhere from 51,000 to 82,000 of those living in the United Kingdom. Of those nations, Portugal's rate of AIDS, eighty-eight persons among every one million, ranks highest, despite it's arrival as one of the newest members of the region to be hit by the pandemic. The most interesting aspect of the situation in Western Europe is that a very significant minority of the causes of contraction is intravenous drug use. Users of these drugs traditionally do cleanse the syringe properly, and the blood from a prior injection contaminates the current procedure. In countries such as France and Spain, the drugs contribute to 20-30% of their infected populace, whereas in Portugal, over half of those infected, attribute their current condition to drug usage.

analysis:introduction

global | australia and new zealand | caribbean | east asia and pacific | e.europe and central asia | latin america | middle east and north africa | north america | south and south east asia | sub-saharan africa |
western europe