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Sarah A. Littlefield, Marlena Gehret,
Stephanie
Skoler, Alana De Kock, Thesla Palanee, and Nela Williams. "Association
between sexual behavior practices and HIV serostatus of women
screened for the Phase 3 Carraguard® microbicide trial."
ABSTRACT
Objectives
To evaluate the effect of selected sexual practices on HIV
serostatus in participants screened for the Phase 3 Carraguard®
microbicide trial.
Study design
The Phase 3 Carraguard® trial is a randomized clinical trial to test
the efficacy of a vaginal microbicide in HIV prevention. Some 9,657 women
were screened across three sites in South Africa: Empilisweni Centre
for Wellness, Setshaba Research Center, and Isipingo Clinic.
Methods
Sexual behavior data were collected through interviewer-administered
questionnaires. HIV testing was conducted at screening.
Results
All
women reported being sexual active. Ninety-nine percent of the cohort reported a
steady sexual partner, and 10 percent had sexual partners in addition to
their main partner. At two study sites, Setshaba and Isipingo, women
who reported multiple sexual partners were significantly more likely
to be HIV-positive at screening (odds ratio [OR] = 1.32, 1.36,
respectively). Twenty percent of women reported that their steady partner had
other sexual partners. These women were significantly more likely to
be HIV-positive at screening at two study sites, Setshaba and
Isipingo (OR = 1.36, 1.68, respectively). Forty-nine percent of
women didn't know whether
their partner had other sexual partners. Condom use at last vaginal
sex varied based on the monogamy of a women's steady partner.
Thirty-seven percent of
women who reported partners with additional partners used a condom,
whereas 31 percent who reported monogamous partners used a condom.
Conclusion
The importance of woman-initiated HIV prevention strategies is
reiterated by low reported condom use, lack of mutual monogamy, and
its strong association with positive HIV serostatus.
Learning objective
- To articulate the association between certain sexual
behaviors and HIV serostatus in women screened for the Phase 3
Carraguard® microbicide trial in South Africa.
Poster Session 2051.0—Issues in US HIV and AIDS
Sunday, 4 November 2007, 4:30–5:30
pm
APHA 2007 Conference Web site
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