Eighty new HIV infections were detected in Chitwan over a nine-month period beginning in January 2024, following screenings of 223 people at Bharatpur Hospital, where the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) conducted tests among high-risk groups. During the same period, a total of 91 patients, including those newly diagnosed, started taking antiretroviral (ARV) medication.
Screening identifies new infections
The infections were found through testing carried out by AHF at Bharatpur Hospital. The screenings covered 223 individuals identified as belonging to high-risk groups, and 80 tested positive for HIV. The cases were recorded in Chitwan during the nine months from January 2024 to the present.
The figures show that positive results accounted for about 36 percent of the people screened. That calculation reflects only this group of 223 individuals tested through the reported screening activity; it does not represent the rate of HIV infection across Chitwan’s wider population.
The report does not provide further details about the people screened, such as their age, gender or location within the district. It also does not specify how many screenings were conducted in each month or whether the 223 individuals were tested once or more than once.
91 patients begin ARV medication
Alongside the new diagnoses, 91 patients started taking antiretroviral medication during the same period. The total includes the newly diagnosed cases, according to the information provided. It does not give a breakdown of how many of the 91 had been diagnosed before the nine-month period.
ARV treatment is the medication reported for these patients following diagnosis or care during the period. The figures therefore cover two related measures: new infections identified through the screenings and the number of patients who began medication. They should not be read as identical totals, since the reported number starting treatment was higher than the number of new cases.
The information available does not explain the difference between the 80 new diagnoses and the 91 patients who started medication, or provide details about individual treatment plans. It also does not include figures for testing or treatment outside the AHF screening activity at Bharatpur Hospital.
The reported results provide a snapshot of HIV screening and treatment activity in Chitwan over nine months. AHF detected 80 new infections among 223 people tested, while 91 patients in total began ARV medication during that period.
