HIV and concurrent sexual partnerships: modelling the role of coital dilution
2011

HIV and Concurrent Sexual Partnerships: The Role of Coital Dilution

Sample size: 20000 publication Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Larry Sawers, Alan G Isaac, Eileen Stillwaggon

Primary Institution: American University

Hypothesis

Does incorporating coital dilution into models of concurrent sexual partnerships affect the spread of HIV?

Conclusion

Incorporating realistic degrees of coital dilution into models shows that concurrency is not a significant driver of HIV epidemics in sub-Saharan Africa.

Supporting Evidence

  • The model shows that higher concurrency leads to faster epidemic extinction.
  • Coital dilution reduces the average frequency of sex acts per partner.
  • Previous studies have shown that concurrency does not significantly increase HIV transmission.

Takeaway

When people have more sexual partners, they tend to have less sex with each one, which means HIV spreads less than we thought.

Methodology

The study modified an existing model to include coital dilution and simulated HIV transmission over 250 years.

Potential Biases

Potential bias in self-reported data on sexual behavior.

Limitations

The model may overstate the impact of concurrency due to assumptions about coital frequency.

Participant Demographics

The model simulated a population of 10,000 men and 10,000 women.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1186/1758-2652-14-44

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