I. Favot et al., HIV-INFECTION AND SEXUAL-BEHAVIOR AMONG WOMEN WITH INFERTILITY IN TANZANIA - A HOSPITAL-BASED STUDY, International journal of epidemiology, 26(2), 1997, pp. 414-419
Background. Infertility is common in Africa, but virtually no data exi
st on HIV prevalence among infertile women. Mainly anthropological stu
dies in Africa have shown that infertile women have higher risks oi ma
rital instability and possibly also have more sexual partners than fer
tile women. Method. This study was conducted in a hospital in northwes
t Tanzania during 1994 and 1995. Women presenting themselves with infe
rtility problems io the outpatient clinic were interviewed, examined a
nd blood was drawn. Women who came to deliver in the hospital, excludi
ng primiparae, were taken as a control group. The analysis was limited
to women greater than or equal to 24 years. In total, 154 infertile a
nd 259 fertile women were included in the study. Results. HIV prevalen
ce was markedly higher among infertile women than among fertile women:
18.2% and 6.6% respectively (adjusted odds ratio [OR] for age, reside
nce and occupation 2.7; 95% confidence interval [CI] : 1.4-5.3). Data
on past sexual behaviour showed that infertile women had more marital
breakdowns, more lifetime sexual partners and a higher level oi exposu
re to sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Conclusion. Women with fert
ility problems appear to have higher HIV prevalence, which justifies m
ore attention for such women in the context oi AIDS programmes. In add
ition, caution is needed when using sentinel surveillance data from an
tenatal clinics to monitor HIV prevalence.