Monitoring HIV through sentinel surveillance in Morocco

Area of Science:

• Epidemiology
• Public Health
• Infectious Diseases

Background:

• HIV sentinel surveillance initiated in Morocco in 1993, expanded in 1996.
• Surveillance data analyzed from 1993 to 1999 across ten provinces.
• Focus on key populations: STI patients, clinic attendees, pregnant women, and TB patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prevalence in Morocco.
• To identify high-risk groups and geographical areas for HIV infection.
• To inform public health strategies for HIV prevention and control.

Main Methods:

• Unlinked anonymous testing procedures employed for surveillance.
• Data collected from sentinel sites in ten Moroccan cities.
• Analysis of HIV prevalence across different demographic and clinical groups.

Main Results:

• Overall HIV prevalence in ten cities was 0.10% (45/44,233) from 1993-1999.
• Casablanca showed a significantly higher prevalence of 0.39% (10/2567).
• Patients with pulmonary tuberculosis had the highest HIV prevalence at 0.36% (9/2530).

Conclusions:

• The HIV epidemic in Morocco is considered low based on the analyzed data.
• A recent increase in HIV prevalence necessitates strengthened preventive measures.
• Targeted interventions are crucial to curb potential spread within identified high-risk groups.