The Iranian Health Ministry says the estimated number of Iranians who are HIV positive stands at 90,000, up to 46 percent of them between 25 and 34 years of age.

Dr. Abbas Sedaghat, who leads the AIDS Control Office of the Ministry, said given that it takes an individual up to four years to undergo HIV/AIDS tests, the age the viral disease is contracted goes down to between 20 and 30.

Shared use of needles (67 percent) and high-risk sexual behavior (14 percent) are the main two culprits in HIV transmission in Iran, he said.

In the year which ended on March 20, 2014, 1,600 were new HIV cases were registered, of whom 45 percent were infected through shared use of needles and 37 percent through high-risk sexual behavior. Among them there were 500 women, he said.

By IFP