HIV risk behaviour, viraemia, and transmission across HIV cascade stages including low-level viremia: Analysis of 14 cross-sectional population-based HIV Impact Assessment surveys in sub-Saharan Africa.

As antiretroviral treatment (ART) coverage for people living with HIV (PLHIV) increases, HIV programmes require up-to-date information about evolving HIV risk behaviour and transmission risk, including those with low-level viremia (LLV; >50 to ≤1000 copies/mL), to guide prevention priorities. We aimed to assess differences in sexual risk behaviours, distribution of viral load (VL) and proportion of transmission across PLHIV subgroups. We analysed data from Population-based HIV Impact Assessment surveys in 14 sub-Saharan African countries during 2015-2019. We estimated adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) of self-reported HIV high-risk behaviour (multiple partners and condomless sex) across cascade stages via generalised estimation equations. We modelled the proportions of transmission from each subgroup using relative self-reported sexual risk, a Hill function for transmission rate by VL, and proportions within cascade stages from surveys and UNAIDS country estimates for 2010-2020. Compared to PLHIV with undetectable VL (≤50 copies/mL), undiagnosed PLHIV (aPR women: 1.28 [95% CI: 1.08-1.52]; men: 1.61 [1.33-1.95]) and men diagnosed but untreated (2.06 [1.52-2.78]) were more likely to self-report high-risk sex. High-risk behaviour was not significantly associated with LLV. Mean VL was similar among undiagnosed, diagnosed but untreated, and on ART but non-suppressed sub-groups. Across surveys, undiagnosed and diagnosed but untreated contributed most to transmission (40-91% and 1-41%, respectively), with less than 1% from those with LLV. Between 2010 and 2020, the proportion of transmission from individuals on ART but non-suppressed increased. In settings with high ART coverage, effective HIV testing, ART linkage, and retention remain priorities to reduce HIV transmission. Persons with LLV are an increasing share of PLHIV but their contribution to HIV transmission was small. Improving suppression among PLHIV on ART with VL ≥1000 copies/mL will become increasingly important.

Improving the benefits of HIV testing and referrals in large household surveys through active linkages to care: lessons and recommendations from the Namibia population-based HIV impact assessment (NAMPHIA), 2017.

In household-based surveys that include rapid HIV testing services (HTS), passive referral systems that give HIV-positive participants information about how and where to access ART but minimal follow-up support from survey staff may result in suboptimal linkage. In the 2017 Namibia Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (NAMPHIA), we piloted a system of active linkage to care and ART (ALCART) that utilized the infrastructure of existing community-based partner organizations (CBPOs). All HIV-positive participants age 15-64 years not on ART were given standard passive referrals to ART plus the option to participate in ALCART. Cases were assigned to CBPOs in participants' localities. Healthcare workers from the CBPO's contacted cases and facilitated their linkage to facility-based ART. A total of 510 participants were eligible and consented to ALCART. The majority were new diagnoses (80.8%), while the remainder were previously diagnosed but not on ART (19.2%). Of the 510, 473 (92.7%) were successfully linked into care. Of these, all but one initiated ART. Our ALCART system used existing CBPOs and contributed to >90% linkage-to-care and >99% ART-initiation among linked participants in a large, nationally-representative survey. This approach can be used to improve the potential benefits of HTS in other large population-based surveys.

Socio-economic inequality and HIV in South Africa.

BACKGROUND: The linkage between the socio-economic inequality and HIV outcomes was analysed using data from a population-based household survey that employed multistage-stratified sampling. The goal is to help refocus attention on how HIV is linked to inequalities. METHODS: A socio-economic index (SEI) score, derived using Multiple Correspondence Analysis of measures of ownership of durable assets, was used to generate three SEI groups: Low (poorest), Middle, and Upper (no so poor). Distribution of HIV outcomes (i.e. HIV prevalence, access to HIV/AIDS information, level of stigma towards HIV/AIDS, perceived HIV risk and sexual behaviour) across the SEI groups, and other background characteristics was assessed using weighted data. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the covariates of the HIV outcomes across the socio-economic groups. The study sample include 14,384 adults 15 years and older. RESULTS: More women (57.5%) than men (42.3%) were found in the poor SEI [P<0.001]. HIV prevalence was highest among the poor (20.8%) followed by those in the middle (15.9%) and those in the upper SEI (4.6%) [P<0.001]. It was also highest among women compared to men (19.7% versus 11.4% respectively) and among black Africans (20.2%) compared to other races [P<0.001]. Individuals in the upper SEI reported higher frequency of HIV testing (59.3%) compared to the low SEI (47.7%) [P< 0.001]. Only 20.5% of those in poor SEI had "good access to HIV/AIDS information" compared to 79.5% in the upper SEI (P<0.001). A higher percentage of the poor had a stigmatizing attitude towards HIV/AIDS (45.6%) compared to those in the upper SEI (34.8%) [P< 0.001]. There was a high personal HIV risk perception among the poor (40.0%) and it declined significantly to 10.9% in the upper SEI. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings underline the disproportionate burden of HIV disease and HIV fear among the poor and vulnerable in South Africa. The poor are further disadvantaged by lack of access to HIV information and HIV/AIDS services such as testing for HIV infection. There is a compelling urgency for the national HIV/AIDS response to maximizing program focus for the poor particularly women.

Determinants of health care seeking for childhood illnesses in Nairobi slums.

The practice of appropriate health seeking has a great potential to reduce the occurrence of severe and life-threatening child illnesses. We assessed the influence of socio-demographic, economic and disease-related factors in health care seeking for child illnesses among slum dwellers of Nairobi, Kenya. A survey round of the Nairobi Urban Demographic Surveillance System (NUDSS) generated information on 2-week child morbidity, illness symptoms, perceived illness severity and use of modern health services. During this round of data collection, interviewers visited a total of 15,174 households, where 3015 children younger than 5 years lived. Of the 999 (33.1%) children who were reported to have been sick, medical care of some sort was sought for 604 (60.5%). Lack of finances (49.6%) and a perception that the illness was not serious (28.1%) were the main reasons given for failure to seek health care outside the home. Health care seeking was most common for sick children in the youngest age group (0-11 months). Caretakers sought medical care more frequently for diarrhoea symptoms than for coughing and even more so when the diarrhoea was associated with fever. Perception of illness severity was strongly associated with health care seeking. Household income was significantly associated with health care seeking up to certain threshold levels, above which its effects stabilized. Improving caretaker skills to recognize danger signs in child illnesses may enhance health-seeking behaviour. Integrated Management of Child Illnesses (IMCI) programmes must be accessible free of charge to the urban poor in order to increase health care seeking and bring about improvements in child survival.

A comparison of pregnancy and child health outcomes between teenage and adult mothers in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya.

The study assessed and compared pregnancy and child health outcomes of teenage (aged less than 20 years) and adult (20-34 years of age) mothers. A total of 226 teenage and 205 adult mothers met the study criteria out of the 3,256 women in the reproductive age group (15-49 years) and 318 adolescent girls (12-14 years of age) covered by the Nairobi Cross-sectional Slums Survey (NCSS). The main comparison involved socio-demographic variables, events during pregnancy, obstetric outcome, child morbidity and mortality and care provided during an illness episode. Results showed that a significantly higher percentage of teenage mothers and their partners had lower educational achievement compared with adult mothers and their partners. They were more likely to be economically disadvantaged than the adult mothers. Teenage mothers and their parents were also less likely to have ever been married. The two groups of mothers were comparable in terms of the rate and timing of antenatal care visits, place of delivery, rate of operative deliveries, reported size of the baby at birth, child vaccination status and reported morbidity and health care practice during an illness episode. The index child was alive during the survey period for 89.4% of the teenage and 96.6% of the adult mothers (OR = 3.36; 95% CI = 1.34, 8.79; P = 0.004). Child survival rates in the two groups of mothers were found to be quite similar after controlled analysis for the influence of socio-economic factors. The study concluded that bad obstetric outcomes were not associated with maternal age. Although teenage and adult mothers were not significantly different on child health practices, children born to the former group died most frequently probably due to their poor socioeconomic achievements.

Teenage pregnancy experiences in rural Kenya.

This community-based survey describes the socio-economic determinants of teenage pregnancy, experiences of health problems during pregnancy, and health care utilization patterns among adolescents (12-19 years old) in rural Kenya. Characteristics of adolescents with repeated pregnancy experiences were compared with first-time pregnancies. The survey covered 3,132 households from 32 randomly selected communities and 1,247 adolescents were interviewed. Data were collected retrospectively through quantitative and qualitative methods. Results showed that 572 (45.9%) adolescents had had sexual intercourse in the past, and of these, 245 (42.8%) had been pregnant at least once. A significant majority of adolescents who had been pregnant were not attending school during the survey period. Fifty-six percent of the first pregnancies occurred while the girl was single. Compared with repeat pregnancies, first pregnancies were more likely to be reported as unwanted (OR = 2.4; 95% CI = 1.1, 5.3). Antenatal care attendance, place of delivery and pregnancy outcomes were not significantly different for first-time and repeat pregnancies. Adolescents' reports on health problems during pregnancy, labour and in the post-partum period were not associated with parity or with age (< 16 years old). A lower proportion of younger primigravidae sought medical attention for health problems that arose during pregnancy (OR = 2.3; 95% CI = 1.1, 4.8) and labor (OR = 3.6; 95% CI = 1.5, 8.7). In conclusion, the study highlighted major unmet reproductive health needs of adolescents in this region. Age and gravida influenced health care seeking which could increase the chances of serious life threatening complications among young primigravidae.