Cell Phones, Sexual Behaviors and HIV Prevalence in Rakai, Uganda: A Cross Sectional Analysis of Longitudinal Data

We examined the association among ownership of cell phones, sexual behaviors (number of sexual partners, alcohol use before sex, inconsistent condom use), and HIV prevalence. Data were from four rounds (2010–2016) of the Rakai Community Cohort S tudy (N = 58,275). Sexual behaviors and HIV prevalence were compared between people whoowned a cell phone to people whodid not own a cell phone. We stratified analysis by younger (15 –24 years) and older (25+ years) age groups and by gender. Using logistic regression and after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, we found cell phone ownership was independently associated with increased odds of having two or more sexual partners in the past 12 months across age a nd gender groups (young men AOR 1.67, 95% CI 1.47–1.90; young women AOR 1.28 95% CI 1.08–1.53; older men AOR 1.54 95% CI 1.41–1.69; older women AOR 1.44 95% CI 1.26–1.65). Interestingly, young men who owned cell phones had decreased odds of using condoms inconsistently (AOR 0.66, 95% CI 0.57 –0.75). For young women, cell phone ownership was associated with increased odds of using alcohol before sex (AOR 1.38 95% CI 1.17–1.63) and increased odds of inconsistent condom use (AOR 1.40, 95% 1.17–1.67). After adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, only young women who owned cel l phones had increased odds of being HIV positive (AOR 1.27 95% CI 1.07–1.50). This association was not mediated by sexual behaviors (Adjusted for sociodemograp...
Source: AIDS and Behavior - Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research