Rong Pei
Sichuan University
Biography:
Rong Pei has her expertise in Prevention and control of HIV, especially in ethnic areas in China. She has been engaged in the research of HIV for a long time and has conducted surveys in poverty-stricken ethnic areas for many times.
Abstract:
Background: Liangshan Prefecture, the highest HIV-affected epidemic region in China, has more than 2.5 million Yi people. The epidemic trend of HIV has gradually changed, sex transmission is the main reason of HIV infection in Liangshan Prefecture now. We firstly investigated the sexual behaviours and their related social determinants of health for HIV infection in Yi women of childbearing age in this area.
Methods: A face-to-face investigation was performing for included respondents who were randomly selected in four counties (Butuo, Zaojue, Yuexi and Meigu) with high HIV infection rates in Liangshan Prefecture. Before interview, each subject was asked to provide 3-5 ml of venous blood for HIV testing. SPSS21.0 was used for data analysis and Mplus 7 for modelling variables.
Results: A total of 800 Yi women of childbearing age were enrolled, and the prevalence of HIV was 9.88% (79/800). The average age of the respondents was 29.54. 79.88% of the respondents were married and 70.75% of them were illiteracy. Path analysis of the risk factors revealed that casual sex (0.152) and number of sex partners (0.152) were directly associated with HIV infection. Furthermore, education level (0.057), out-migrating for work (0.032), sense of self-worth (0.024) and number of sex partners (0.079) were indirect related to HIV infection, and mediated by casual sex and multiple sexual partners.
Conclusions: The epidemic of HIV infection among Yi women of childbearing age in Liangshan Prefecture is seriously, and casual sex and multiple sexual partners are strongly associated with HIV infection.