Abstract:
The HIV status of cohabiting partners can be
described as discordant if one partner is
HIV-negative and the other is HIV-positive.
This report assesses the prevalence of
discordance and the level of HIV risk from
discordance by locating discordant couples
within a larger pattern of association among
sex (male or female), having a cohabiting
partner, and the HIV status of individual men
and women. This three-way association varies
by age, place of residence, educational
level, and wealth quintile.
Data for the analysis come from DHS surveys
in 10 countries in sub-Saharan Africa:
Cameroon, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique,
Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and
Zimbabwe. The countries were selected because
their HIV prevalence exceeds 4%. Their most
recent surveys were conducted between 2006
and 2012. Because DHS data are cross-
sectional, and provide little or no
information about date or source of HIV
infection, duration of cohabitation,
disruption due to death or dissolution of
relationships, etc., the study is largely
descriptive. Non-cohabiting partnerships are
not represented in this analysis. It is found
that in virtually all countries and
subpopulations, there are far fewer
discordant couples than would be expected
under a random model. The two possible types
of discordant couples are nearly always of
equal size, regardless of differences between
the HIV prevalences of men and women in the
larger population. The percentage of HIV-
negative individuals who have elevated risk
of seroconversion because of discordance with
a cohabiting partner ranges from 1% to 4%.
The risks are similar for men and women.
HIV Status and Cohabitation in Sub-Saharan Africa (PDF, 3699K)