| pubmed-article:1733024 | pubmed:abstractText | The total number of people infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) in South Africa was estimated from a number of sources of seroprevalence for each of these viruses. A total figure of 122,951 HIV-infected individuals in South Africa was arrived at for January 1991; 69% (85,247) were from the urban black population and 20% (24,474) from the rural black population. The male homosexual population constituted some 7% (8,175) of the total, 94% of whom were white; however, this probably represented a substantial underestimation of the size of this population. A total of 1,475,223 carriers of HBV virus was calculated for South Africa from data obtained from 1986 to 1990. Of these, 88% (1,302,741) came from the rural black population and 8% (114,118) from the urban black population. Extrapolations from small sample numbers and often with broad assumptions are subject to considerable error. Nevertheless, estimated total figures do provide a vivid picture of the extent of these two epidemics. | lld:pubmed |
