This is evident from the publication of the 2024 HIV Monitoring Report by the Stichting HIV Monitoring (SHM), released ahead of World AIDS Day on December 1. Prof. Marc van der Valk “We’ve seen a strong decline in the number of new HIV diagnoses in the Netherlands over a long period. The stagnation in this decline is striking.”
New HIV diagnoses
So far in 2023, 424 people have been diagnosed with HIV in the Netherlands. Of the new diagnoses, 242 (57%) were among men who have sex with men (MSM), 103 (24%) among other men, 66 (16%) among women, and 13 (3%) among transgender individuals. Between 2010 and 2020, the number of HIV diagnoses in the Netherlands decreased by 62%, from 1,157 to 434. In 2021, 2022, and 2023, the numbers were 415, 426, and 424 new diagnoses, respectively, signaling that the declining trend has stopped.
Social and economic circumstances
Analyses show that people with HIV in the Netherlands more often have a low income1. In 2022, this applied to 23% of people with HIV in care, compared to 13% of the general population. People with HIV also receive social welfare benefits more often than those without HIV—14% versus 4% in the general population. Of those with HIV in care, for those with a low income the HIV virus is twice as often not virally-suppressed, and individuals are twice as likely to drop out of HIV care compared to those with HIV with higher incomes2.
Prof. van der Valk: “These detailed insights are essential to understand for which groups care still remains to be optimized. Additionally, the data can hopefully contribute to more targeted prevention strategies. This is urgently needed to ensure that the number of HIV infections decreases, in order to target zero new infections in the Netherlands.”
Age at time of HIV diagnosis
The proportion of younger MSM (aged 15-30) diagnosed with HIV has risen from 15% in 2002 to 29% in 2023. Similarly, the proportion of MSM older than 50 with a new HIV diagnosis has increased from 12% in 2002 to 25% in 2023.
Late HIV diagnoses
For 1,225 people diagnosed with HIV between 2021-2023, the stage of HIV infection at the time of diagnosis is known. Of these 1,225, 567 (46%) were diagnosed late3. This percentage is highest among other men (64%) and women (57%).
Van der Valk: “It is truly unnecessary for so many HIV diagnoses to be made at a late stage in a country like the Netherlands. If HIV diagnosis happens on time, severe health damage can be prevented. Moreover, life expectancy of people with HIV who receive a timely HIV diagnoses is almost the same as that of people without HIV. In addition, for someone with an early diagnoses often immediate treatment follows, and therefore HIV transmission is halted.”
Of the 567 people diagnosed late between 2021-2023, 203 (36%) were hospitalized within a year due to complications from the HIV infection/ AIDS. Thirteen (2%) of these individuals died due to HIV/AIDS. In contrast, only 21 (3%) individuals with a timely diagnosis were hospitalized, and none died as a result of HIV.
Population
At the end of 2023, it is estimated4 that 25,240 people in the Netherlands are living with HIV, of whom 22,557 have started treatment. Of these, 21,753 (96%) have successfully suppressed the virus, meaning they can no longer transmit it. It is estimated that 1,470 people in the Netherlands are unaware of their HIV status. In 2023, 25 people died as a result of an advanced HIV infection (AIDS).
These and other data can be found in the summary of the HIV Monitoring Report. You can read our previous news article on t his topic here.
HIV monitoring report
Every year around World Aids Day, the HIV Monitoring Report is published. This report provides a comprehensive overview of the current population of people living with HIV in the Netherlands. The report is published - commissioned by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport and the Center for Infectious Disease Control of the RIVM - in cooperation with the 23 recognized HIV treatment centers in the Netherlands, including Amsterdam UMC. Starting this year, data will be available at both regional and national levels.
1 Low income is defined by CBS as 120% of the social minimum income. The government adjusts the social minimum income every six months. See also: www.uwv.nl/nl/toeslag/sociaal-minimum.
2High income is defined by CBS as 300% of the social minimum income.
3A late HIV diagnosis is defined as having a CD4 count <350 cells/mm3 and/or a simultaneous AIDS diagnosis, with the HIV test not indicating a recent infection.
4The number is estimated based on the annual new HIV diagnoses, using a method provided by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).