Australia has been very successful in limiting the spread of HIV. Much of this success has been due to the early establishment of services, such as the screening of the blood supply, and needle exchange programs. These actions stopped HIV spreading into the general community through blood transfusions or the sharing of used needles by drug users.

It is estimated that there are currently 3,500 Victorians living with HIV/AIDS. The numbers of Victorians newly-diagnosed with HIV steadily declined after 1994, to reach a low in 1999 of 140 new cases for that year. However, the annual number of diagnoses has been steadily rising since then, with 224 new diagnoses recorded in 2004.

The number of Victorians developing AIDS peaked in 1994 (203 individuals), and has dramatically fallen to 45 in 2002 as a result of the widespread use of antiviral combination therapy.

For more detailed information about HIV/AIDS in Australia click on the link, below, to the National Centre of HIV Epidemiological and Clinical Research.

Victorian Surveillance (data)