Predicting the epidemiological impact of antiretroviral allocation strategies in KwaZulu-Natal: the effect of the urban-rural divide.
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SUBMITTER: Wilson DP
PROVIDER: S-EPMC1599939 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:ObjectivesResearch on migration and HIV has largely focused on male migration, often failing to measure HIV risks associated with migration for women. We aimed to establish whether associations between migration and HIV infection differ for women and men, and identify possible mechanisms by which women's migration contributes to their high infection risk.DesignData on socio-demographic characteristics, patterns of migration, sexual behavior and HIV infection status were obtained for a population of 11,677 women aged 15-49 and men aged 15-54, resident members of households within a demographic surveillance area participating in HIV surveillance in 2003-04.MethodsLogistic regression was conducted to examine whether sex and migration were independently associated with HIV infection in three additive effects models, using measures of recent migration, household presence and migration frequency. Multiplicative effects models were fitted to explore whether the risk of HIV associated with migration differed for males and females. Further modeling and simulations explored whether composition or behavioral differences accounted for observed associations.ResultsRelative to non-migrant males, non-migrant females had higher odds of being HIV-positive (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.72; 95% confidence interval [1.49-1.99]), but odds were higher for female migrants (aOR = 2.55 [2.07-3.13]). Female migrants also had higher odds of infection relative to female non-migrants (aOR = 1.48 [1.23-1.77]). The association between number of sexual partners over the lifetime and HIV infection was modified by both sex and migrant status: For male non-migrants, each additional partner was associated with 3% higher odds of HIV infection (aOR = 1.03 [1.02-1.05]); for male migrants the association between number of partners and HIV infection was non-significant. Each additional partner increased odds of HIV infection by 22% for female non-migrants (aOR = 1.22 [1.12-1.32]) and 46% for female migrants (aOR = 1.46 [1.25-1.69]).ConclusionsHigher risk sexual behavior in the context of migration increased women's likelihood of HIV infection.
| S-EPMC2902532 | biostudies-literature
Project description:OBJECTIVES:Understanding of progression to antiretroviral therapy (ART) eligibility and associated factors remains limited. The objectives of this analysis were to determine the time to ART eligibility and to explore factors associated with disease progression in adults with early HIV infection. METHODS:HIV-infected adults (??18 years old) with CD4 cell count >?500 cells/?l were enrolled in the study at three primary health care clinics, and a sociodemographic, behavioural and partnership-level questionnaire was administered. Participants were followed 6-monthly and ART eligibility was determined using a CD4 cell count threshold of 350 cells/?l. Kaplan?-?Meier and Cox proportional hazard regression modelling were used in the analysis. RESULTS:A total of 206 adults contributed 381 years of follow-up; 79 (38%) reached the ART eligibility threshold. Median time to ART eligibility was shorter for male patients (12.0 months) than for female patients (33.9 months). Male sex [adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) 3.13; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.82-5.39], residing in a household with food shortage in the previous year (aHR 1.58; 95% CI 0.99-2.54), and taking nutritional supplements in the first 6 months after enrolment (aHR 2.06; 95% CI 1.11-3.83) were associated with shorter time to ART eligibility. Compared with reference CD4 cell count????559 cells/?l, higher CD4 cell count was associated with longer time to ART eligibility [aHR 0.46 (95% CI 0.25-0.83) for CD4 cell count 560-632 cells/?l; aHR 0.30 (95% CI 0.16-0.57) for CD4 cell count 633-768 cells/?l; and aHR 0.17 (95% CI 0.08-0.38) for CD4 cell count?>?768 cells/?l]. CONCLUSIONS:Over one in three adults with CD4 cell count?>?500 cells/?l became eligible for ART at a CD4 cell count threshold of 350 cells/?l over a median of 2 years. The shorter time to ART eligibility in male patients suggests a possible need for sex-specific pre-ART care and monitoring strategies.
| S-EPMC4682449 | biostudies-other
Project description:IntroductionAntiretroviral therapy (ART) has revolutionised the care of HIV-positive individuals resulting in marked decreases in morbidity and mortality, and markedly reduced transmission to sexual partners. However, these benefits can only be realised if individuals are aware of their HIV-positive status, initiated and retained on suppressive lifelong ART. Framed using the socio-ecological model, the present study explores factors contributing to poor ART uptake among community members despite high acceptance of HIV-testing within a Treatment as Prevention (TasP) trial. In this paper we identify barriers and facilitators to treatment across different levels of the socio-ecological framework covering individual, community and health system components.MethodsThis research was embedded within a cluster-randomised trial (ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01509508) of HIV treatment as Prevention in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Data were collected between January 2013 and July 2014 from resident community members. Ten participants contributed to repeat in-depth interviews whilst 42 participants took part in repeat focus group discussions. Data from individual interviews and focus group discussions were triangulated using community walks to give insights into community members' perception of the barriers and facilitators of ART uptake. We used thematic analysis guided by a socio-ecological framework to analyse participants' narratives from both individual interviews and focus group discussions.ResultsBarriers and facilitators operating at the individual, community and health system levels influence ART uptake. Stigma was an over-arching barrier, across all three levels and expressed variably as fear of HIV disclosure, concerns about segregated HIV clinical services and negative community religious perceptions. Other barriers were individual (substance misuse, fear of ART side effects), community (alternative health beliefs). Facilitators cited by participants included individual (expectations of improved health and longer life expectancy following ART, single tablet regimens), community (availability of ART in the community through mobile trial facilities) and health system factors (fast and efficient service provided by friendly staff).DiscussionWe identified multiple barriers to achieving universal ART uptake. To enhance uptake in HIV care services, and achieve the full benefits of ART requires interventions that tackle persistent HIV stigma, and offer people with HIV respectful, convenient and efficient services. These interventions require evaluation in appropriately designed studies.
| S-EPMC7514038 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundInvesting in offspring's human capital has been suggested as an effective strategy for parents to improve their living conditions at older ages. A few studies have assessed the role of children's schooling in parental survival in high-income countries, but none have considered lower-resource settings with limited public wealth transfers and high adult mortality.MethodsWe followed 17,789 parents between January 2003 and August 2015 in a large population-based open cohort in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. We used Cox proportional hazards models to investigate the association between offspring's schooling and time to parental death. We assessed the association separately by parental sex and for four cause of death groups.ResultsA one year increase in offspring's schooling attainment was associated with a 5% decline in the hazard of maternal death (adjusted Hazard Ratio [aHR]: 0.95, 95%CI: 0.94-0.97) and a 6% decline in the hazard of paternal death (aHR: 0.94, 95%CI: 0.92-0.96), adjusting for a wide range of demographic and socio-economic variables of the parent and their children. Among mothers, the association was strongest for communicable, maternal, perinatal and nutritional conditions (aHR: 0.87, 95%CI: 0.82-0.92) and AIDS and tuberculosis (aHR: 0.92, 95%CI: 0.89-0.96), and weakest for injuries. Among fathers, the association was strongest for injuries (aHR: 0.87, 95%CI: 0.79-0.95) and AIDS and tuberculosis (aHR: 0.92, 95%CI: 0.89-0.96), and weakest for non-communicable diseases.ConclusionHigher levels of schooling in offspring are associated with increased parental survival in rural South Africa, particularly for mothers at risk of communicable disease mortality and fathers at risk of injury mortality. Offspring's human capital may be an important factor for health disparities, particularly in lower-resource settings.
| S-EPMC5322823 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundStudies of HIV-serodiscordant couples in stable sexual relationships have provided convincing evidence that antiretroviral therapy can prevent the transmission of HIV. We aimed to quantify the preventive effect of a public-sector HIV treatment and care programme based in a community with poor knowledge and disclosure of HIV status, frequent migration, late marriage, and multiple partnerships. Specifically, we assessed whether an individual's hazard of HIV acquisition was associated with antiretroviral therapy coverage among household members of the opposite sex.MethodsIn this prospective cohort study, we linked patients' records from a public-sector HIV treatment programme in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, with population-based HIV surveillance data collected between 2004 and 2012. We used information about coresidence to construct estimates of HIV prevalence and antiretroviral therapy coverage for each household. We then regressed the time to HIV seroconversion for 14,505 individuals, who were HIV-uninfected at baseline and individually followed up over time regarding their HIV status, on opposite-sex household antiretroviral therapy coverage, controlling for household HIV prevalence and a range of other potential confounders.Findings2037 individual HIV seroconversions were recorded during 54,845 person-years of follow-up. For each increase of ten percentage points in opposite-sex household antiretroviral therapy coverage, the HIV acquisition hazard was reduced by 6% (95% CI 2–9), after controlling for other factors. This effect size translates into large reductions in HIV acquisition hazards when household antiretroviral therapy coverage is substantially increased. For example, an increase of 50 percentage points in household antiretroviral therapy coverage (eg, from 20% to 70%) reduced the hazard of HIV acquisition by 26% (95% CI 9–39).InterpretationOur findings provide further evidence that antiretroviral therapy significantly reduces the risk of onward transmission of HIV in a real-world setting in sub-Saharan Africa. Awareness that antiretroviral therapy can prevent transmission to coresident sexual partners could be a powerful motivator for HIV testing and antiretroviral treatment uptake, retention, and adherence.FundingWellcome Trust and National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (US National Institutes of Health).
| S-EPMC3986029 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Inequalities exist and persist in society in different forms and are often areas of prime concern for governments and policy makers around the globe. One such inequality that plagues societies is the rural-urban divide. Several social entrepreneurs are attempting to leverage technology to bridge this divide. In our research-in-progress paper, we describe the case of an Indian company, which is leveraging technology to create knowledge-based jobs for the rural Indian population. The approach adopted by the company in initiating and sustaining such an effort was an inside-out approach in contrast to the usual approach of focusing only on the internal resources within the company. Specifically, our research aims at abstracting the process mechanisms that enabled such an initiative. The unearthed mechanisms would inform future research on the modalities for orchestrating such an initiative. The findings would also help practitioners, especially social entrepreneurs, to think of innovative business models that would create value not only for the company but also for society as a whole. The delineated learnings would also help enthused social entrepreneurs to transplant such initiatives to other regions of the world.
| S-EPMC7134320 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Shortages of Human Resources for Health (HRH) in rural areas are often driven by poor working and living conditions, inadequate salaries and benefits, lack of training and career development opportunities amongst others. The South African government has adopted a human resource strategy for the health sector in 2011 aimed at addressing these challenges.This study reviews the challenges faced by health personnel against government strategies aimed at attracting and retaining health personnel in these underserved areas.The study was conducted in six primary health care service sites in the Hlabisa sub-district of Umkhanyakude, located in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.The study population comprised 25 health workers including 11 professional nurses, 4 staff nurses and 10 doctors (4 medical doctors, 3 foreign medical doctors and 3 doctors undertaking community service). Qualitative data were collected from semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis.Government initiatives including the rural allowance, deployment of foreign medical doctors and the presence of health personnel undertaking their community service in rural areas are positively viewed by health personnel working in rural health facilities. However, poor living and working conditions, together with inadequate personal development opportunities, remain unresolved challenges. It is these challenges that will continue to dissuade experienced health personnel from remaining in these underserved areas.South Africa's HRH strategy for the Health Sector 2012/13-2015/16 had highlighted the key challenges raised by respondents and identified strategies aimed at addressing these challenges. Implementation of these strategies is key to improving both living and working conditions, and providing health personnel with opportunities for further development will require inter-ministerial collaboration if the HRH 2030 objectives are to be realised.
| S-EPMC5566120 | biostudies-other
Project description:The KwaZulu-Natal region of South Africa is experiencing an explosive outbreak of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) subtype C infections. Understanding the genetic diversity of C viruses and the biological consequences of this diversity is important for the design of effective control strategies. We analyzed the protease gene, the first 935 nucleotides of reverse transcriptase, and the C2V5 envelope region of a representative set of 72 treatment-naïve patients from KwaZulu-Natal and correlated the results with amino acid signature and resistance patterns. Phylogenetic analysis revealed multiple clusters or "lineages" of HIV-1 subtype C that segregated with other C viruses from southern Africa. The same pattern was observed for both black and Indian subgroups and for retrospective specimens collected prior to 1990, indicating that multiple sublineages of HIV-1 C have been present in KwaZulu-Natal since the early stages of the epidemic. With the exception of three nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor mutations, no primary resistance mutations were identified. Numerous accessory polymorphisms were present in the protease, but none were located at drug-binding or active sites of the enzyme. One frequent polymorphism, I93L, was located near the protease/reverse transcriptase cleavage site. In the envelope, disruption of the glycosylation motif at the beginning of V3 was associated with the presence of an extra protein kinase C phosphorylation site at codon 11. Many polymorphisms were embedded within cytotoxic T lymphocyte or overlapping cytotoxic T-lymphocyte/T-helper epitopes, as defined for subtype B. This work forms a baseline for future studies aimed at understanding the impact of genetic diversity on vaccine efficacy and on natural susceptibility to antiretroviral drugs.
| S-EPMC141090 | biostudies-literature
Project description:ObjectiveTo determine the frequency and patterns of acquired antiretroviral drug resistance in a rural primary health care programme in South Africa.DesignCross-sectional study nested within HIV treatment programme.MethodsAdult (? 18 years) HIV-infected individuals initially treated with a first-line stavudine- or zidovudine-based antiretroviral therapy (ART) regimen and with evidence of virological failure (one viral load >1000 copies/ml) were enrolled from 17 rural primary health care clinics. Genotypic resistance testing was performed using the in-house SATuRN/Life Technologies system. Sequences were analysed and genotypic susceptibility scores (GSS) for standard second-line regimens were calculated using the Stanford HIVDB 6.0.5 algorithms.ResultsA total of 222 adults were successfully genotyped for HIV drug resistance between December 2010 and March 2012. The most common regimens at time of genotype were stavudine, lamivudine and efavirenz (51%); and stavudine, lamivudine and nevirapine (24%). Median duration of ART was 42 months (interquartile range (IQR) 32-53) and median duration of antiretroviral failure was 27 months (IQR 17-40). One hundred and ninety one (86%) had at least one drug resistance mutation. For 34 individuals (15%), the GSS for the standard second-line regimen was <2, suggesting a significantly compromised regimen. In univariate analysis, individuals with a prior nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) substitution were more likely to have a GSS <2 than those on the same NRTIs throughout (odds ratio (OR) 5.70, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.60-12.49).ConclusionsThere are high levels of drug resistance in adults with failure of first-line antiretroviral therapy in this rural primary health care programme. Standard second-line regimens could potentially have had reduced efficacy in about one in seven adults involved.
| S-EPMC3749184 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Better understanding of drug resistance patterns in HIV-infected children on antiretroviral therapy (ART) is required to inform public health policies in high prevalence settings. The aim of this study was to characterise the acquired drug resistance in HIV-infected children failing first-line ART in a decentralised rural HIV programme.Plasma samples were collected from 101 paediatric patients (?15 yrs of age) identified as failing ART. RNA was extracted from the plasma, reverse transcribed and a 1.3 kb region of the pol gene was amplified and sequenced using Sanger sequencing protocols. Sequences were edited in Geneious and drug resistance mutations were identified using the RegaDB and the Stanford resistance algorithms. The prevalence and frequency of mutations were analysed together with selected clinical and demographic data in STATA v11.A total of 101 children were enrolled and 89 (88%) were successfully genotyped; 73 on a non-nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)-based regimen and 16 on a protease inhibitor (PI)-based regimen at the time of genotyping. The majority of patients on an NNRTI regimen (80%) had both nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) and NNRTI resistance mutations. M184V and K103N were the most common mutations amongst children on NNRTI-based and M184V among children on PI-based regimens. 30.1% had one or more thymidine analogue mutation (TAM) and 6% had ?3 TAMs. Only one child on a PI-based regimen harboured a major PI resistance mutation.Whilst the patterns of resistance were largely predictable, the few complex resistance patterns seen with NNRTI-based regimens and the absence of major PI mutations in children failing PI-based regimens suggest the need for wider access to genotypic resistance testing in this setting.
| S-EPMC3922737 | biostudies-literature