There's been a significant drop in the number of people dying from AIDS in Switzerland. The number of people contracting HIV/AIDS is also falling.

There's been a significant drop in the number of people dying from AIDS in Switzerland. The number of people contracting HIV/AIDS is also falling.

The Federal Health Office announced that a total of 42 people - 27 men and 15 women - died of AIDS in Switzerland in 1999, compared to 107 deaths the previous year, and 235 in 1997. It attributed the fall to the increased use of new combination therapies.

The number of AIDS cases has also fallen. Last year, 264 new cases were registered, down from 426 in 1998. Of those 264, 147 were diagnosed in 1999. The delay in registering the others was due to the time it took for individual doctors to notify the cantonal, and then the national authorities, the Federal Health Office said.

The number of heterosexuals with AIDS has remained stable, while the number of homosexuals and intravenous drug-users has dropped.

There has also been a fall in the number of people testing HIV-positive in comparison with 1998. There were 585 positive tests, as opposed to 657 the previous year. Ten years ago, the figure was 1,956.

Since 1984, 4,900 people have died of AIDS in Switzerland.

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