HIV screening in men and women in Senegal: coverage and associated factors analysis of the 2017 demographic and health survey

Abstract

Introduction Despite the adoption of the provider-initiated HIV testing strategy, the rate of HIV testing is still very low in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of this study was to assess the factors associated with HIV testing among in sexually active women and men in Senegal. Knowledge of HIV status is the gateway to antiretroviral treatment.Methods A secondary analysis of the 2017 Senegal Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) was performed, using data on sexually active women age 15-49 and men age 15-59. The outcome variable was the proportion of women and men who reported ever being tested for HIV in the last 12 months before the survey. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the socio-demographic, HIV-knowledge, media exposure, and behavioral factors associated with HIV testing in Senegal.Results The study found that 62% of women and 27% of men were tested for HIV at the last 12 months. In multivariate analysis, among men the factors independently associated with being tested for HIV were: older age group (50-54); a high level of education; being in the richest household wealth quintile; being married; knowing about the efficacy of HART during pregnancy; and owning a mobile phone. Among women factors independently associated with HIV testing were: older age group (30-34); a high level of education; being in the richest household wealth quintile; being married; knowing about the efficacy of HART during pregnancy; having any STI in last 12 months; fearing stigma; owning a mobile phone; and having any number of ANC visits, versus none.Conclusion Although HIV remains a public health threat, 73% of men and 38% women in Senegal were not tested for HIV in the last 12 months. Low prevalence of HIV testing makes it difficult to interrupt the transmission chain within the community and to reach the UNAIDS goal for 2020 of “90-90-90”. Innovative community-based strategies are needed to address barriers and improve access to HIV testing, particularly for men and for the youngest and poorest populations, and to narrow the disparities in awareness of HIV status in Senegal.

HIV voluntary counseling and testing uptake and associated factors among Ethiopian youths: evidence from the 2016 EDHS using multilevel modeling

“…The odds of getting HIV tests for Ethiopian youths with middle and rich wealth status were nearly 1.28 and 1.72 times higher compared to their poor peers. This finding is similar to the results of many other studies done in Southeast Asia and Africa where youths from households in the highest wealth quintile were more likely to opt-in for HIV testing as compared to youths from households in the poor wealth quintile [ 31 , 33 , 41 , 42 ]. This can be explained by differences in access to media and access to health facilities for rich people than poor people.…”

“…For married youths and youths with another form of marital status, the odds of getting HIV tests were nearly 5.37 and 4.60 times higher compared to their peer youths who are not in marital union. Studies from Cambodia, Malawi, Tanzania, and Senegal using secondary DHS data analyses also showed that ever-married women more likely accept HIV testing as compared to never-married women which are consistent with the findings from the current study [ 30 , 33 , 41 , 56 ]. There could be different possible reasons for this.…”

“…Regarding mobile telephone ownership, the odds of getting an HIV test for mobile owner Ethiopian youths was 1.88 times higher compared to their Ethiopian peers who did not own mobile. The finding is in line with the finding of the study done in Senegal using the secondary data analyses of DHS data where women and men mobile owners were respectively 40 and 90% more likely to accept HIV testing services as compared to non-mobile owners [ 33 ]. Ethiopian youths who listen to the radio at least once a week were 1.33 times more likely to accept HIV voluntary counseling and testing compared to their Ethiopian peers who did not listen to the radio.…”

“…The odds of getting HIV tests for Ethiopian youths who completed primary, secondary, and higher education were 1.45, 2.47, and 3.49 times higher compared to their Ethiopian uneducated peers. This finding supports the findings from secondary data analysis of DHS which were done in Cambodia, Burkina Faso, Malawi, Tanzania, and Senegal where academic advancement was highly associated with receiving HIV testing [ 30 , 32 , 33 , 41 , 56 ]. This could be due to the reason that educated youths have better HIV knowledge and have less stigmatized attitudes towards PLWH.…”