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High HIV Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors Among Female Sexual Partners of Male Injection Drug Users (MWID) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

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Abstract

Injection drug use is a major factor in acquiring and transmitting HIV in Vietnam. This analysis aims to present estimates of HIV infection and factors associated with HIV infection among female sex partners (FSP) of MWID in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam. Cross-sectional surveys were conducted in 2011 and 2013 among males who inject drugs (MWID) who then referred their FSP for a behavioral and biologic survey. In total, 445 MWID and FSPs were enrolled. HIV prevalence among MWID was 50 and 35 % among FSPs. Among FSPs, 60.3 % reported ever using illegal drugs and among those, 72.7 % reported ever injecting illicit drugs. Among FSP, injection drug for >1 year [adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR), 95 % CI 2.94, 1.19–7.26), p value = <0.001] and having a male partner infected with HIV [(aOR 3.35: 1.97–5.69), p value = <0.001] were associated with HIV infection. The prevalence of HIV infection is high among FSP of MWID in HCMC and is highly associated with the injection drug use behavior of the FSP. Harm-reduction intervention programs that focus on the MWID-FSP couple or directly on the FSPs are required.

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Notes

  1. ‘Condom use’ was calculated by dividing the number of times using condoms during sex in the past month by the number of reported times having sex in the past month. ‘Consistent condom use in the past month’ was defined categorically as those enrollees with 100 % condom use in the past month.

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Acknowledgments

The research has been supported by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through the USAID Contract No.: GPO-I-00-05-00026-00, Health Policy Initiative Vietnam awarded to Abt. Associates Inc.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kirby Institute for Infection and Immunity in Society, UNSW, Sydney, Australia

    Patrick Nadol, John Kaldor & Matthew Law

  2. Partners in Health Research (PHR), Hanoi, Vietnam

    Hoang Tran

  3. Abt Associates Inc., Cambridge, USA

    Theodore Hammett & Son Phan

  4. US Agency for International Development (USAID), Hanoi, Vietnam

    Duong Nguyen

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  1. Patrick Nadol
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  2. Hoang Tran
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Correspondence to Patrick Nadol.

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Nadol, P., Tran, H., Hammett, T. et al. High HIV Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors Among Female Sexual Partners of Male Injection Drug Users (MWID) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. AIDS Behav 20, 395–404 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-015-1156-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-015-1156-1

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