Why are Testing Rates so Low in Sub-Saharan Africa? Misconceptions and Strategic Behaviors

Abstract Voluntary testing and counseling (VTC) is a popular method for fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The purpose of VTC is to reduce the incidence of the virus in a two-fold manner. First, testing provides access to health care and antiretroviral therapies that diminish the transmission rate of the virus. Second, counseling encourages safer behavior for not only individuals who test HIV-negative and wish to avoid HIV/AIDS infection but also altruistic individuals who test HIV-positive and wish to protect their partners from becoming infected by HIV. Surprisingly, DHS surveys that were conducted in sub-Saharan Africa provide empirical evidence that testing services are underutilized. Moreover, it is rare for both partners in a couple to be tested for HIV. This paper proposes a theoretical model that indicates how misperceptions about the HIV/AIDS virus may explain these puzzles. More specifically, this study demonstrates that individuals who are at risk of HIV infection may act strategically to avoid the cost of testing if they overestimate the risk of HIV transmission or believe that health care is not required if HIV is asymptomatic. The correction of false beliefs and the promotion of self-testing are expected to increase HIV testing rates.

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Coping With HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa: What Hinders People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) From Seeking Care in Health Care Institutions?

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e513522013-001 ◽

2011 ◽

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

People Living With Hiv ◽

Health Care Institutions ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Living With Hiv ◽

Hiv Aids

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Epidemiological characteristics of HIV/AIDS in west China

International Journal of STD & AIDS ◽

10.1258/095646206776790105 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 17 (5) ◽

pp. 324-328 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Zhi Hu ◽

Xia Qin ◽

Min-Zhen Zhu ◽

Sen Yang ◽

Xue-Jun Zhang

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Hiv Transmission ◽

Risk Behaviour ◽

Sexual Risk Behaviour ◽

The West ◽

Access To Treatment ◽

Aids Epidemic ◽

Care Workers ◽

Epidemiological Characteristics ◽

Hiv Aids

China is facing a major crisis because of the increasing epidemic of HIV/AIDS, especially in the western areas. The purpose of this paper is to enhance understanding of the crisis by analysing the published literature on the epidemiology, demographic features, routes of infection, and risk factors of HIV/AIDS infection in the 12 provinces in the west of China. HIV/AIDS has increased rapidly in recent years. The situation is urgent and requires comprehensive action. China's health care system is decentralized and under-funded, and access to treatment by the poor is seriously limited. There is a lack of knowledge about HIV/AIDS in the general public and health care workers. The HIV/AIDS epidemic emerged initially in western areas of the country by means of intravenous drug use, but sexual risk behaviour and mother-to-child transmissions in the west of China are becoming important for HIV transmission.

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Hiv-associated lipodystrophy and exercise

South African Journal of Physiotherapy ◽

10.4102/sajp.v62i2.240 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 62 (2) ◽

Author(s):

E. Mutimura ◽

A. Stewart ◽

N. J. Crowther

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Sufficient Evidence ◽

Metabolic Dysfunction ◽

Exercise Participation ◽

Need To Evaluate ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Hiv Lipodystrophy ◽

Hiv Aids

As individuals affected by HIV/AIDS live longer due to the availability of HAART, the challenge to health care professionals is to manage and alleviate abnormalities associated with HAART. HIVlipodystrophy- altered body fat redistribution- is the most common stigmatising physical abnormality related to the use of HAART, which maybe alleviated by exercise participation. Currently, there is no reliable management standard care for HIV-associated lipodystrophy. However, there is sufficient evidence to support the benefits of exercise in adults with HIV infection. As various types of ARTs become available in the most HIV/AIDS stricken developing countries, there are inadequate studies to evaluate and promote exercise in alleviating HIV lipodystrophy and other related complications. The current paper reviews HIV-related lipodystrophy, related metabolic dysfunction, and the role of exercise in its management. The paper highlights the need to evaluate the effectiveness of exercise on HIV lipodystrophy syndrome. An emphasis needs to be put on raising awareness among health care professionals in Sub-Saharan Africa where the prevalence of HIV/AIDS is the highest in the world.

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Analysis of HIV/AIDS Epidemic and Socioeconomic Factors in Sub-Saharan Africa

Entropy ◽

10.3390/e22111230 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (11) ◽

pp. 1230 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Shuman Sun ◽

Zhiming Li ◽

Huiguo Zhang ◽

Haijun Jiang ◽

Xijian Hu

Keyword(s):

Socioeconomic Factors ◽

Regression Models ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Likelihood Method ◽

Unknown Parameters ◽

Aids Epidemic ◽

Acquired Immunodeficiency ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Immunodeficiency Syndrome ◽

Hiv Aids

Sub-Saharan Africa has been the epicenter of the outbreak since the spread of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) began to be prevalent. This article proposes several regression models to investigate the relationships between the HIV/AIDS epidemic and socioeconomic factors (the gross domestic product per capita, and population density) in ten countries of Sub-Saharan Africa, for 2011–2016. The maximum likelihood method was used to estimate the unknown parameters of these models along with the Newton–Raphson procedure and Fisher scoring algorithm. Comparing these regression models, there exist significant spatiotemporal non-stationarity and auto-correlations between the HIV/AIDS epidemic and two socioeconomic factors. Based on the empirical results, we suggest that the geographically and temporally weighted Poisson autoregressive (GTWPAR) model is more suitable than other models, and has the better fitting results.

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