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Sexual mixing patterns in Uganda: small-time urban/rural traders
H Pickering1, M Okongo, K Bwanika
1Medical Research Council/Uganda Virus Research Institute, Entebbe, Uganda.
AIDS (London, England)
|May 1, 1996
Summary
Male traders in Africa show limited sexual mixing between urban and rural areas, despite economic ties. This finding helps explain the contained spread of HIV from high-prevalence towns to surrounding rural regions.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Social Science
- Public Health
Background:
- Trading towns in Africa often exhibit high HIV prevalence.
- Rural areas typically have lower HIV prevalence compared to trading towns.
- Understanding population movement and sexual contact patterns is crucial for disease control.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify sexual contacts among male traders residing in urban versus rural settings.
- To determine the extent of sexual mixing between urban and rural populations facilitated by trade.
Main Methods:
- Fifty-one male traders (urban and rural residents) maintained daily diaries for 584 person-weeks.
- Diaries recorded all journeys and sexual contacts.
- HIV prevalence data for urban (approx. 40%) and rural (approx. 8%) areas were noted.
Main Results:
- Traders made an average of 3.7 return trips weekly, primarily between town and rural areas.
- A total of 1377 sexual contacts were recorded.
- Urban-based traders had 95% of contacts in town; rural-based traders had 82% in their home village, with minimal contacts in the trading town.
Conclusions:
- Significant economic interaction between urban and rural traders does not translate to widespread sexual mixing.
- Limited sexual contact between urban and rural populations may be a key factor preventing the diffusion of high HIV prevalence from trading towns to rural areas.