HIV Infection in Senegalese Prisons: Prevalence and Associated Factors ()
Affiliation(s)
1Division for HIV/AIDS Control, Ministry of Health, Dakar, Senegal.
2Intra Health International, Dakar, Senegal.
3Agency for the Promotion of Entrepreneurship among Populations in Senegal (APAPS), Dakar, Senegal.
4National AIDS Control Program, Dakar, Senegal.
5Laboratory of Bacteriology, Aristide le Dantec Hospital, Dakar, Senegal.
ABSTRACT
HIV/AIDS is a serious health problem among prisoners and constitutes a
big challenge for prison administration services, public health services and governments. Aims: Determine the prevalence of HIV infection among prisoners and
describe associated factors. Population and Methods: This was a descriptive
and analytical cross-sectional study conducted from December 2015 to October
2016. A sample of 600 prisoners was randomly interviewed nationwide. They were
selected directly from the sample frame from across the country and
proportionally from all sites. Pre-established questionnaires providing
information on the sociodemographic and biological characteristics of prisoners
were used for the collection of data. Data entry and analysis were performed using EXCEL and SPSS 18 software. Results: The survey was based on a randomised sample of 600 prisoners, 593 of
whom accepted blood extraction for the HIV testing. The series was mainly
composed of males (89%). The median age was 33 years (18 - 69). The level of
education among respondents was 60%. Regarding marital status, the proportion
of married prisoners was 51.8%. Almost three-quarters (71.5%) were at their
first imprisonment and 51.8% were on preventive detention. The reasons for
imprisonment varied and were dominated by drug use (35.3%), while only 4.6%
confessed that they continued using drugs while in prison. 97.8% of prisoners
have had a sexual experience. Their median age was 19 years at their first
sexual intercourse. 20.5% reported using a condom during their first
intercourse. Multi partnership was estimated
at 17.8%. The prevalence of HIV infection was high among prisoners (2%), the
quadruple of the national rate. This prevalence was associated with female sex
(4.5%) (p = 0.012) and housewives (12.5%) (p = 0.002). Conclusion: Prisoners are very vulnerable to HIV infection with
a high prevalence compared to the national rate, hence the need for the enforcement
of effective HIV prevention and care measures in prisons.
Share and Cite:
Ba, S. , Koïta, M. , Diop, I. , Niang-Diallo, P. , Gueye, A. , Ndour, C. and Thiam, S. (2020) HIV Infection in Senegalese Prisons: Prevalence and Associated Factors.
Advances in Infectious Diseases,
10, 130-139. doi:
10.4236/aid.2020.102010.
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