Risk of HIV transmission within marriage in rural China: implications for HIV prevention at the family level.

BACKGROUND

Little is known about HIV transmission at the family level in China.

GOAL: : We examined the risks for HIV transmission between husbands and wives and from parents to children in a rural area where HIV spread among former commercial blood donors.

STUDY: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 605 (302 couples) marriage license applicants.

RESULTS

More males (64.6%) than females (52.1%) reported having had premarital sex and multiple sex partners (12.6% and 6.9%, respectively). Among those having had multiple sex partners, 8.5% reported often or always using condoms. Only 36.8% of the couples agreed that they would not plan to have a baby after knowing the status of HIV infection. Approximately 43% of the couples agreed that they would use condoms consistently if 1 of them were HIV-positive.

CONCLUSIONS

There is an urgent need for national programs to prevent HIV infection within couples in rural areas.