BEIJING, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) -- AIDS, the official journal of the International AIDS Society, has published its first special issue on China, to educate readers about the achievements and challenges in the country's efforts to deal with the fatal epidemic.

    The special edition was jointly edited by Wang Longde, chairman of the Chinese Preventive Medicine Association (CPMA), and two well-known American AIDS experts, Dr. Roger Detels and Dr. Sten H.Vermund.

    The edition features one commentary and 23 academic papers on the HIV/AIDS situation and epidemiological studies in China, as well as the country's measures to deal with the disease and care for AIDS patients. Most of the authors are Chinese experts and medical professionals.

    According to the CPMA chairman, the decision to publish the special issue indicates that China has approached or reached the international level in the field of HIV/AIDS research.

    AIDS publishes every three weeks, or 18 times a year.

    In 1985, China reported its first AIDS case. To date, the government has reported about 700,000 people infected with HIV, including some 85,000 people being treated as patients. So far, about 20,000 Chinese have died of AIDS.