Abstract
Purpose We report on risk factors for HIV seroprevalent infection in women in 73 rural villages in Cameroon. While epidemiological studies of women in Sub-Saharan Africa have identified single marital status and age 15–24 years as risk factors for HIV-seropositivity, the intranational geography of HIV has received little attention in most African countries. Methods The HIV1/2 rapid assay, standard ELISA, and Western blot were used to determine the prevalence of HIV antibodies in 73 rural villages located in 6 of the 10 provinces of Cameroon, Africa during 2000–2001. Information regarding demographic data and risk factors was obtained using structured questionnaires during face-to-face interviews. Results Odds ratios (ORs) significantly different from the null value of 1.0 were associated with: (a) age, with 25–39 years old women at risk of HIV-seropositivity compared to 15–24 year old women (OR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.24–2.70); (b) education, (OR for women with a primary school education = 1.94, 95% CI = 1.24–3.04), compared to illiterate women; and (c) marital status (OR for married women compared to single women = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.30–0.66). In addition, significant odds ratios for HIV-seropositivity were associated with the geographic location of the villages. After adjustment for other variables (OR per degree increase in latitude = 0.18, 95% CI = 0.06–0.55; OR per degree increase in longitude = 0.57, 95% CI = 0.39–0.84, OR for the interaction between latitude and longitude = 1.16, 95% CI = 1.05–1.28) indicating decreased risk with increasing distance from Cameroon's Atlantic coastline, and with increasing distance from the equator. Conclusion Our findings thus suggest geographic patterns of HIV-seroprevalence, the knowledge of which may be helpful in targeting treatment and prevention activities in that country.
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