Factors Affecting Married, Monogamous Women’s Risk of HIV Infection in India: Traditional Gender Roles and Husbands’ High-Risk Sexual Behaviours

Kelly Aa Leslie

doi:10.5530/ijmedph.2019.4.25

Abstract

International Journal of Medicine and Public Health,2019,9,4,112-117.DOI:10.5530/ijmedph.2019.4.25Published:December 2019Type:Review Article Factors Affecting Married, Monogamous Women’s Risk of HIV Infection in India: Traditional Gender Roles and Husbands’ High-Risk Sexual BehavioursKelly A A Leslie Kelly A. A. Leslie Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, CANADA. Abstract:The prevalence of HIV in India has been steadily increasing over the last three decades and India is now thought to possess the third largest number of cases out of any country in the world. India is currently experiencing a significant feminization of its HIV epidemic; a large proportion of new HIV infections are observed in women and the majority of all HIV cases in India are contracted by heterosexual transmission. While married, monogamous women were initially considered at low risk for contracting HIV in India, they are now recognized as being a high-risk group, as the prevalence of HIV among women who have ever been married is higher than the national average. Because the vast majority of these women report that unprotected intercourse with their husband is their only risk factor for HIV infection, it can be concluded that they have likely been infected by their husband. This review investigates the principal factors involved in the infection of married, monogamous Indian women with HIV by their husbands, within the context of traditional Indian gender roles and cultural expectations of behaviour. Specifically, this article examines three high-risk sexual behaviour commonly perpetrated by Indian men: extramarital sexual relations, lack of condom use during sex and intimate partner violence. Given the magnitude of the problem of HIV in India and its implications for the spread of HIV throughout the world, the topic of women’s risk of HIV infection in India is clearly of immense public health significance. Keywords:HIV, India, WomenView:PDF (228.06 KB)

Highlights

India is currently experiencing a significant feminization of its Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) epidemic; 38% of new HIV infections are observed in women,[6] and 84% of all HIV cases in India are contracted by heterosexual transmission.[7]
Since the rate of HIV transmission among heterosexuals in India is expected to increase by 2% to 3% per year,[9] it is of paramount importance to ask the question: what are the principal factors involved in the infection of monogamous, married women with HIV by their husbands?. This question will be addressed by this article, in which it is argued that particular high-risk sexual behaviours committed by many Indian men—extramarital sexual relations, lack of condom use during sex and intimate partner violence—lead to HIV infection in married, monogamous women in India
This article investigated the principal factors involved in the infection of married, monogamous Indian women with HIV by their husbands, within the context of traditional Indian gender roles and culture

Summary

Introduction

Article Available online http://www.ijmedph.org/v9/i4The prevalence of HIV in India has been steadily increasing since the first reported cases were observed in commercial sex workers in 1986 period.[1].

Results

Conclusion