Premarital HIV testing on prospective couples in a teaching hospital in sub Saharan Africa

Most religious bodies insist on premarital screening for prospective couples.

To determine the level of voluntary screening, prevalence and risk factors of HIV among premarital couples.

A cross-sectional descriptive study using interviewer administered questionnaire and HIV screening to collect data. Systematic sampling of everythird premarital couples attending the General outpatient Clinic between November 2010 and October 2011. SPSS version 17 was used for data analysis of 386 subjects.

A majority of respondents (83.4% or 322); X2 = 172.446, df = 1, p < .05) had knowledge of transmission of HIV. Mandatory HIV screening was 5.7% (22); X2 = 303.018, df = 1, p < .05), while voluntary testing was 30% (113). The sero-prevalence of HIV was 2.6%, which was statistically and significantly associated with cohabitation and upper social class. A majority (68.4% or 266); X2 = 272.166, df = 3, p < .05) would call off marriage plans if their spouses tested positive to HIV. CONCLUSION The knowledge of transmission of HIV was very high with low sero-prevalence (2.6%) among premarital couples. Voluntary HIV testing was higher than mandatory request, while cohabitation and upper social class are risk factors for HIV transmission.