Friday, January 9, 2015

Intimate Partner Violence and HIV in Africa

The Lancet Global Health published in January 2015 a detailed study titled "Intimate Partner Violence and HIV in Ten Sub-Saharan African Countries: What Do the Demographic and Health Surveys Tell US?" by Dick Durevall and Annika Lindskog. 

The study looks at Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Rwanda, Mali, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.  The authors' findings indicate that male controlling behavior in its own right, or as an indicator of ongoing or severe violence, puts women at risk of HIV infection.  They recommend that HIV prevention interventions focus on high prevalence areas and men with controlling behavior, in addition to violence.