Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1994. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The epidemiology of HIV infection in a rural area of Guinea-Bissau.
AIDS. 1993 Aug;7(8):1119-22. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/94000544 Wilkins A; Ricard D; Todd J; Whittle H; Dias F; Paulo Da Silva A; Medical Research Council Laboratories, Banjul, The Gambia.
Abstract:
OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of HIV infection and its relationship to age, sex and other factors. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional survey of a rural community in Guinea-Bissau. METHODS: Questionnaire-administration and screening of sera from subjects aged > or = 15 years. RESULTS: Of the 2770 subjects tested, 220 (7.9%) were HIV-2-seropositive, four (0.1%) were HIV-1-seropositive and 10 (0.4%) were dually reactive. Overall prevalence of HIV-2 was 9.3% in women, peaking at 17.2% in the 35-44 age group, and 6.6% in men, peaking at 19.1% in the 45-54 age group. The mean age of the four subjects with HIV-1 infection was 24 years, which was significantly lower than those with HIV-2 infection. HIV-2 infection was more prevalent among women who were widowed or divorced, women whose husbands were living away from the study area, and women who had lived in the capital, Bissau. The majority of subjects with an infected spouse remained uninfected and none of the women aged < 25 years whose husbands were infected were seropositive. The prevalence varied significantly between settlements within the study area. CONCLUSIONS: The pattern of HIV-2 infection in this rural community has similarities to that found in urban Bissau, and prevalence in both areas peaks in older subjects than in HIV-1 foci. The findings support previous suggestions that HIV-2 is not a recent introduction to Guinea-Bissau, and that it is less pathogenic and less readily transmitted than HIV-1.
Keywords: Adolescence Adult Age Factors Aged Cross-Sectional Studies Female Guinea-Bissau/EPIDEMIOLOGY Human HIV Infections/EPIDEMIOLOGY/TRANSMISSION *HIV Seroprevalence HIV-1 HIV-2 Male Marital Status Middle Age Risk Factors Rural Population Sex Factors Support, Non-U.S. Gov't JOURNAL ARTICLE 940130
M9410783
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