HIV infection in Scotland: summary report to 31 December 2019

On 23 June 2020, Health Protection Scotland (HPS), part of Public Health Scotland (PHS), published its annual report on HIV diagnoses and uptake of specialist treatment and care.

There has been a decrease in the number of first ever HIV diagnoses recorded for both men who have sex with men (MSM) and those who have acquired HIV through heterosexual sexual intercourse. However, there is evidence that the outbreak in people who inject drugs, first reported in 2015, has continued in 2019.

An estimated 6,100 people are living with HIV in Scotland, of whom 92% (5,617) are diagnosed. Levels of access to treatment and care continue to be high, with 98% (4,970) of those attending specialist HIV services on antiretroviral therapy, and 95% (4,714) of whom have an undetectable viral load. In 2018, Scotland first achieved the UNAIDS 90-90-90 Fast Track Targets set for 2020, a trend which has continued in 2019.

This report also contains the latest data, taken from July through to December 2019, on the uptake of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a drug taken to prevent HIV infection. The uptake of HIV PrEP continues at a similar level to the start of 2019, with around 100 individuals seeking a PrEP prescription for the first time each month during the last six months of 2019.