China

The picture in this region is dominated by the People's Republic of China. Much of the current spread of HIV in China is through intravenous drug abuse and paid sex. The number was estimated at between 430,000 and 1.5 million by independent researchers, with some estimates going much higher. In the rural areas, especially in Henan province, large numbers of farmers participated in contaminated blood transfusions; estimates of those infected are in the tens of thousands.