HIV and alcohol knowledge, self-perceived risk for HIV, and risky sexual behavior among young HIV-negative men identified as harmful or hazardous drinkers in Katutura, Namibia

Details

• Alternative Title:
  BMC Public Health
• Personal Author:
  Schwitters, Amee ; Sabatier, Jennifer ; Seth, Puja ; Glenshaw, Mary ; Remmert, Dietrich ; Pathak, Sonal ; Bock, Naomi
• Description:
  Background
  
  Namibia’s HIV prevalence is 13.3 %. Alcohol is associated with sexual risk-taking, leading to increased HIV risk. Baseline sexual behaviors, HIV and alcohol knowledge, and self-perceived HIV risk were examined among men reporting high-risk drinking in Katutura, Namibia.
  
  Methods
  
  HIV negative men, ≥ 18 years, were screened for harmful or hazardous levels of drinking and >1 recent sex partner prior to randomization into control or intervention arm. SAS 9.3 and R 3.01 were used for descriptive baseline cohort analyses.
  
  Results
  
  A total of 501 participants who met criteria were included in analysis (mean Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test [AUDIT] =12.4). HIV and alcohol knowledge were high with the majority (>85 and 89.8–98 %, respectively) of respondents correctly answering assessment questions. Despite high knowledge levels, 66.7 % of men felt they were at some or high risk of HIV acquisition. Among those respondents, 56.5 % stated often wanting to have sex after drinking and 40.3 % stated sex was better when drunk. Among respondents with non-steady partners [n = 188], 44.1 % of last sexual encounters occurred while the participant was drunk and condoms were not used 32.5 % of those times. Among persons who were not drunk condoms were not used 13.3 % of those times.
  
  Conclusions
  
  Sex with casual partners was high. Inconsistent condom use and alcohol use before sex were frequently reported. Increased emphasis on alcohol risk-reduction strategies, including drinking due to peer pressure and unsafe sexual behaviors, is needed.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Adult Alcohol Alcohol Drinking Alcoholism Cohort Studies Condoms Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice HIV HIV Infections Humans Male Men Research Article Risk-Taking Self Concept Sexual Behavior Surveys And Questionnaires Young Adult

  More +
• Source:
  BMC Public Health. 15.
• Pubmed ID:
  26607874
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC4660628
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  PS002722/PS/NCHHSTP CDC HHS/United States ; PEPFAR/United States
• Name as Subject:
  United States. President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)
• Place as Subject:
  Namibia
• Volume:
  15
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:3dd49f16cfaf3ca0a88126f43846f330819c41d7a28e4c7df513ccebc2f872677124d1a8fdfa5d44eee9b1d168dedec1e92cc1564607370fb4cd5bc1695bf090
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/36153/cdc_36153_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 435.71 KB ]