:: Volume 25, Issue 6 (Scientific Journal of Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences 2021) ::
SJKU 2021, 25(6): 103-114 Back to browse issues page
Prevalence of HIV infection and high-risk behavior among seasonal migrant workers in Kurdistan Province
Abdorrahim Afkhamzadeh1 , Behzad Mohsenpour2 , Farnaz Zandvakili3 , Khaled Rahmani 4, Mehdi Khunjam5
1- Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Research Institute for Health Development, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran
2- Zoonosis Research Center, Research Institute for Health Development, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran.
3- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran
4- Liver and Digestive Research Center, Research Institute for Health Development, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran , khaledrahmani111@muk.ac.ir
5- Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran
Abstract:   (1717 Views)
Background and Aim: Seasonal migrant workers are among the groups which are exposed to the risk of social harm, including HIV, because of entering into a new environment and staying away from their families. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of HIV and risky behavior among seasonal migrant workers in Kurdistan Province.
Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study included 600 seasonal migrant workers in Kurdistan Province from 2018 to 2019. Data about high-risk behavior were collected by using a standard questionnaire. A rapid HIV test was used to detect HIV in the study participants. Using Stata software V14, data were analyzed by chi-square, Mann-Whitney U test, and logistic regression modeling.
Results: We did not find any positive rapid HIV test in the participants, in other words, the prevalence of HIV in the study population was zero. Ninety-two (15.3%) individuals reported a history of drug abuse, among them one (1.1%) had a history of drug injection. One hundred and twenty-one (20.2%) of the individuals had a history of sexual behavior outside marriage. Multivariate analysis showed a significantly higher rate of risky sexual behavior among individuals with a history of drug abuse and single persons (P <0.001).
Conclusion: Although the prevalence of HIV infection among seasonal migrant workers was zero, the history of drug abuse and risky sexual behavior were high among this vulnerable group. Low knowledge about HIV is also a serious cause for concern. Continuous surveillance of risky behavior and administration of interventional programs for this group seems necessary.
Keywords: Migrant Worker, HIV/AIDS, Risky Sexual Behavior, Substance Abuse
Full-Text [PDF 506 kb]   (729 Downloads)    
Type of Study: Applicable | Subject: General
Received: 2019/11/3 | Accepted: 2020/05/19 | Published: 2021/01/29



XML   Persian Abstract   Print



Rights and permissions
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Volume 25, Issue 6 (Scientific Journal of Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences 2021) Back to browse issues page