Knowledge of HIV/AIDS among married women in Bangladesh: analysis of three consecutive multiple indicator cluster surveys (MICS)

Abstract

Married women have a higher risk of contracting human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or develop acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) than men. Knowledge of HIV/AIDS contributes significantly to describing the prevalence and consequences of such virus/disease. The study aimed to investigate the level of HIV/AIDS knowledge and the socio-demographic variables that influence HIV/AIDS knowledge among married women in Bangladesh. We used three waves of Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), which included 33,843, 20,727, and 29,724 married women from 2006, 2012, and 2019 MICS. A score was prepared through their interrogation to determine the level of knowledge and logistic regression models were used for analyzing the data. This study found that the prevalence of knowledge level of HIV/AIDS in different questions increased from 55.20% in 2006 to 58.69% in 2019. In our study, respondents having highest education had 4.03 (95% CI 3.50–4.64) times more chance to obtain “High Score” in 2019 MICS which is 5.30 times in 2012 MICS (95% CI 4.41–6.37) and 2.58 times in 2006 MICS (95% CI 2.28–2.93) compared to illiterate married women. Moreover, respondents from urban area were 1.13 times more likely to obtain “High Score” in 2019 MICS which is 1.14 times in 2012 MICS and 1.16 times in 2006 MICS, respectively than the rural married women. This study also found respondent’s age, division, mass media access, and wealth status have played an important role in HIV/AIDS knowledge. Although a significant proportion of women had adequate knowledge of HIV/AIDS, more knowledge is still required to protect against such viruses/diseases. Thus, we advocate for the implementation of educational program in the curriculum, counselling, particularly in rural areas, and mass media access to ensure quality knowledge throughout the country.

Dentists and dental hygienists’ comprehension of HIV infection associated periodontal implications and management

“…In this aspect, the literature is somewhat contentious, with some research supporting our finding and others contradicting it. The observation made by Hasan et al about the higher awareness of women about HIV/AIDS parallels the findings of the present study ( 22 ). Contrary to this, the observations of Chory et al and Nabunya et al imply that women have poorer knowledge than men ( 23 , 24 ).…”

Comprehensive knowledge and positive attitudes regarding HIV/AIDS among reproductive-aged women in Bangladesh and their associated factors: a cross-sectional study using the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2019

“…This study reveals a significant lack of sufficient knowledge and poor attitudes regarding HIV/AIDS, with more than half of the women in Bangladesh lacking these attributes, and notable regional variations observed. These findings align with the results of previous studies conducted in Bangladesh [31, 32] and neighboring countries such as India [56, 57] and Pakistan [54]. It is worth noting in general the level of knowledge and attitudes reported in this study can be considered relatively good, given that a majority of the Bangladeshi population has not had direct exposure to individuals affected by HIV/AIDS.…”

“…There is a significant gap in the studies identifying the levels and factors, specifically the level of attitudes and geographical variations of knowledge and attitudes among the women in Bangladesh. These studies primarily focused on HIV/AIDS knowledge and its associated sociodemographic factors [23, 25–32]. According to these studies, women with higher levels of education, residing in urban areas, being exposed to mass media, working outside the home, and higher wealth quintile were played important roles in raising awareness about HIV/AIDS.…”

“…These studies primarily focused on HIV/AIDS knowledge and its associated sociodemographic factors [23,[25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32]. According to these studies, women with higher levels of education, residing in urban areas, being exposed to mass media, working outside the home, and higher wealth quintile were played important roles in raising awareness about HIV/AIDS.…”