Age-Disparate Relationships and HIV Prevalence Among Never Married Women in Rakai, Uganda

• Published in: Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) Vol. 79; no. 4; pp. 430 - 434
• Main Authors: Mwinnyaa, George, Gray, Ronald H, Grabowski, Mary K, Ssekasanvu, Joseph, Ndyanabo, Anthony, Ssekubugu, Robert, Kagaayi, Joseph, Kigozi, Godfrey, Nakigozi, Gertrude, Serwadda, David M, Laeyendecker, Oliver
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Copyright Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved 01-12-2018
• ISSN: 1525-4135; 1944-7884
• DOI: 10.1097/QAI.0000000000001832

BACKGROUND:Age-disparate relationships are associated with increased HIV prevalence. We determined whether the frequency of age-disparate relationships in never married women changed over time and whether they are associated with HIV prevalence in Rakai, Uganda.
METHODS:10,061 never married women, aged 15-49 in the Rakai Community Cohort Study provided information on the age of their male sexual partners from 1997 to 2013. Logistic regression was used to assess trends in age-disparate relationships (≥5 years) between never married women and their male partners. Log-binomial regression was used to estimate adjusted prevalence ratios (adjPR) of HIV prevalence associated with age-disparate relationships.
RESULTS:2,992 women (30%) had a male partner ≥5 years older which remained stable over time. The prevalence of HIV among women in age-disparate relationships was 14%, 10% for women in relationships with men 0-4 years older (adjPR 1.36, 95% CI 1.22, 1.53) not controlling women’s age, however after age adjustment the impact of age-disparate relationships on HIV prevalence was attenuated. Age-disparate relationships were associated with increased HIV prevalence among women aged 15-17 (adjPR 1.83, 95% CI 1.10, 3.19), but not in other age groups.
CONCLUSIONS:The frequency of age-disparate relationships among never married women were unchanged over a 15-year period in Rakai, Uganda. Age-disparate relationships were associated with increased HIV prevalence among adolescents 15-17, but not older women.Written work prepared by employees of the Federal Government as part of their official duties is, under the U.S. Copyright Act, a “work of the United States Government” for which copyright protection under Title 17 of the United States Code is not available. As such, copyright does not extend to the contributions of employees of the Federal Government.