The Future of Research of the HIV Epidemic in Russia

The work on the present project has shown a great degree of uncertainty not only over quantitative estimations but also over the definition of the main notions. There are virtually no data on the size of risk groups, while the available information on the subject matter is fragmentary. Research in this area has been poorly coordinated. Methodological approaches differ from each other, thus making it hard to make the results achieved compatible. The development of the models to be applicable to the epidemic is just at the beginning, and there is a lack of consensus on requirements for a model of this kind, let alone the possibilities of parametrization. 

The authors of the report hope that their work will contribute to promoting interdisciplinary research of the HIV epidemic in Russia. It would be of great use not only to continue to maintain contacts between the experts of the demographic and medical sections of the project but also to expand their cooperation, making it stronger in regard to modeling and imparting, if possible, stable organizational forms to their cooperative efforts.

It would be worthwhile to promote wider use of the advantages that Russia has (thus making the country meet certain obligations to the global community) in the form of well documented cases of HIV infection.