The vulnerability of Brazilian female prisoners to HIV infection
Braz. j. med. biol. res
; 37(5): 771-776, May 2004. tab
Article
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| LILACS
| ID: lil-357550
Biblioteca responsable:
BR1.1
RESUMO
The purpose of the present study was to determine the vulnerability of women in prison to HIV infection. The study was carried out from August to October 2000 in a São Paulo State Penitentiary, where 299 female prisoners were serving time. We interviewed and obtained a blood sample from 290 females who agreed to enter the study. Sera were tested for the presence of antibodies to HIV, hepatitis C virus (HCV) and syphilis and the odds ratio (OR) was calculated for variables related to HIV positivity on the basis of a questionnaire. The overall prevalence data were 13.9 percent for HIV (37 of 267), 22.8 percent for syphilis (66 of 290), and 16.2 percent for HCV (47 of 290). Sexual partnership variables were significantly related to HIV infection. These included HIV-positive partners (OR = 7.36, P = 0.0001), casual partners (OR = 8.96, P = 0.009), injectable drug user partners (OR = 4.7, P = 0.0001), and history of sexually transmitted disease (OR = 2.07, P = 0.05). In addition, a relationship was detected between HIV infection and drug use (OR = 2.48, P = 0.04) and injectable drug use (OR = 4.2, P = 0.002). Even women with only one partner presented a significant OR for HIV infection (OR = 2.57, P = 0.009), reflecting their vulnerability due to their trust in their partner, who did not use a condom. Although the use of injectable substances is associated with HIV infection, our results point to sexual behavior as the most important component of HIV transmission in the female prisoner population.
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Índice:
LILACS
Asunto principal:
Prisioneros
/
Infecciones por VIH
/
Estudios Seroepidemiológicos
Tipo de estudio:
Etiology_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Female
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Humans
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Male
País/Región como asunto:
America do sul
/
Brasil
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Braz. j. med. biol. res
Asunto de la revista:
BIOLOGIA
/
MEDICINA
Año:
2004
Tipo del documento:
Article
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Congress and conference
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Project document