Disproportionate Burden of HIV Prevalence among Men and Women assessing HIV Testing and Counseling Services in Cross River State, Nigeria.

Abstract

Background: In Sub-Saharan Africa, approximately 57% of Adults living with HIV are Women.HIV prevalence in Cross River State is 7.1%, compared to National of 4.1%. This study aims to ascertain the HIV prevalence rates among men and women assessing HIV Testing and Counseling (HTC) services in Nigeria's South-South region. Methods: Cross-Sectional quantitative study was conducted in November, 2011 among clients who received HTC services in 34 Primary Health centers across 5 LGAs of Cross River state. Relevant data of HIV Sero-Status of clients were collected from provider administered HTC client intake forms. Data was analyzed using Pearson Chi-Square. Results: 690 clients 316 (45.8%) male and 374 (54.2%) females were tested for HIV using Determine Abbott test kits. Age distribution of clients ranged from 18-41 years with mean age of 29.5 years. Prevalence of HIV among clients is 4.2% (29/690) with women contributing 7.0% (25/374) as compared with Men 1.2% (4/316). There was a significant association between HIV Sero-Status of Men and Women, (Pearson Chi-Square, P= 0.01). Conclusion: This result indicates that HIV Prevalence among women is disproportionately greater than that among men in Cross River state which appeared significant at the 95% confidence interval.