EDITORIAL REVIEW HIV infection in the Caribbean

Summary: The Caribbean is a multi-ethnic region with many different cultural differences. The majority of the population is of African d~scent, but there are also other ethnic groups present such as Indians, Chinese, Syrians and Eur~p.eans.The Caribbean region is influenced by countries such as the US~, Great BntaIn ~ France and Holland. The countries of the Caribbean have.a s~nou ~ pro?le ~ wI~h HIV infection and AIDS. The epidemiology of HIV infection In this regIon, IS diff~re~t from most other parts of the world in that the mode of spread d~es n~t e~s~y fit into any of the three WHO patterns. This re.view sh~ws that t~e infection initially started in the homosexual/bisexual community, but since then, It has n:oved to the heterosexual population and this form of contact is now the. main mod ~ of transmission of the virus. The Governments of the Caribbean countries have ~eahz~d the extent of the problem and have taken measures to try to control the epidemic