KOTA BAHARU, Dec 5 (Bernama) -- Kelantanese women top the list of those afflicted with HIV/Aids, as compared to those in other states.
Their affliction has been attributed to their spouses or boyfriends often making 'pleasure' trips to Thailand.
The promiscuous lifestyle of those men was a main factor for indirect exposure of HIV/Aids to the women, said Malaysian Aids Council (MAC) president Datuk Mohd Zaman Khan.
"Many of the women were afflicted with the disease as their husbands had engaged the services of prostitutes.
"For example, Kelantanese men often go to Sungai Golok and after engaging with prostitutes, they return to their wives and pass on the disease," he told reporters after the National World Aids Day Celebrations 2010 here Sunday.
The event was launched by Health deputy director-general (Public Health) Datuk Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman who represented Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
Nevertheless, said Mohd Zaman, those engaging in such lifestyles should protect their loved ones from the disease by undergoing screening tests.
"Individuals with high-risk lifestyles must know that they are exposed to threats of HIV/Aids so they should be tested.
"If the first test is negative, it is best they go for a second test to be certain of their good health," he added.
Earlier, when Hasan was reading Liow's speech text, he said Kelantan had contributed to the highest number of HIV/Aids infection rate over the past five years.
For 2008 and last year, he said the infection rate in Malaysia was 13.3 per cent, with 10.8 per cent for every 100,000 residents.
However, it was almost four times more for Kelantan with 47 per cent infection and 37.2 per cent for every 100,000 people, added Hasan.
Kelantan has the highest cumulative number of women affected by HIV/Aids in the country at 1,211 cases, followed by Johor (1,124) and Selangor (1,107).
-- BERNAMA