Risks of acquiring and transmitting sexually transmitted diseases in sexual partner networks

Background: A person's risk for acquiring infection and their role in conti nued transmission has traditionally been assessed on the basis of individua l characteristics. Recently, network studies have attempted to relate indiv idual risks to position in the wider network. Goal: To assess the importance of local and global network structures in as sessing the risk of acquiring and transmitting infection. Study Design: An individual-based simulation model was used to construct a variety of potential network structures and track the transmission of infec tion over time. Logistic and Poisson regression were used to identify which measures of network position influence a person's risk for acquiring and t ransmitting infection, Results: Measures of local centrality were more important to risk of acquis ition, whereas global centrality mattered more to transmission. Continuous snowball sampling, rather than a fixed number of waves, better estimates a person's risks. Conclusions: There is an asymmetry regarding the risk of acquiring and tran smitting infection.