Scientists who have mapped HIV’s spread across Europe say holidaymakers infected abroad are largely to blame.
By analysing samples from 17 European countries, the international team tracked the movement of the virus around the continent.
Theirmap shows Greece, Portugal, Serbia and Spain are big HIV exporters,with many tourists to and migrants from these countries leaving withthe virus.
The UK is an exporter and importer, Retrovirology journal says.
Thesame is true of Israel, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden andSwitzerland, while countries like Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germanyand Luxembourg are largely importers of HIV, the researchers say.
In Poland, HIV is contained but is spread among its inhabitants because of injecting drug-users, the research group found.
To construct their map, the researchers looked at the most common type of HIV circulating in Europe, known as HIV-1 subtype B.
Theytracked its migration by creating a family tree for the virus, lookingat detailed genetic characteristics that reveal how the virus has beenevolving over time.