Socio-economic and demographic factors associated with prevalence of HIV infection among pregnant women in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Msamanga, G;
Fawzi, W;
Hertzmark, E;
McGrath, N;
Kapiga, S;
Kagoma, C;
Spiegelman, D;
Hunter, D;
(2006)
Socio-economic and demographic factors associated with prevalence of HIV infection among pregnant women in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
East African medical journal, 83 (6).
pp. 311-321.
ISSN 0012-835X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/eamj.v83i6.9438
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BACKGROUND: HIV/AIDS epidemic has become generalised in low resource settings in sub-Saharan Africa where 90% of all maternal-foetal transmission of HIV infection occurs. Global effort to scale-up pMTCT is underway, however, mechanisms to maximise screening of HIV- 1 positive women for Nevirapine treatment and other interventions, are not clear. OBJECTIVE: To identify socioeconomic and demographic characteristics associated with the prevalence of HIV- 1 infection among Tanzanian women. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Four antenatal clinics in Dar es Salaam. RESULTS: HIV prevalence rate was 13.1 (95% confidence interval (CI): 12.7% - 13.5%) and it increased with increasing maternal age. Older age than 25, mid-arm circumference less than 25cm, geographic location, working in a public house, and partner's occupation were independently associated with higher prevalence of infection. Women in monogamous marriages were 77% less likely to be HIV infected compared to women with no regular partner. Similarly, women with more than five persons per household, and those who spent less on food had a significantly lower HIV prevalence. CONCLUSION: HIV infection is sufficiently widespread among women in Dar es Salaam suggesting that screening based on socioeconomic and demographic characteristics would miss a large proportion of the positives. There is need to increase facilities for counselling and testing using an opt-out approach for testing in all antenatal clinics in the city.