Prevalence and risk factors for sexually transmitted infections among people living with HIV attending a sexually transmitted infection clinic in Trinidad

Abstract

A cross-sectional study to determine the prevalence and risk factors for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among people living with HIV (PLHIV) attending the STI clinic in Trinidad was conducted during the period April–September 2014. A questionnaire was administered to obtain socio-demographic data and risk factors for STIs and patients were screened for STIs. Two hundred and ten PLHIV (138 males [65.7%] and 72 females [34.3%]) were enrolled; age range 18–68 years, mean age 36.4 years. Seventy-eight (37.1%) of the 210 patients were diagnosed with a concurrent STI. Homosexual/bisexual study patients were more likely to be diagnosed with an STI (OR, 3.56; 95% CI, 1.94–6.51) and more likely to be diagnosed with syphilis (OR, 4.84; 95% CI, 2.40–9.77). Multivariate analysis using binary multiple regression showed that risk factors for STIs included male gender (OR, 2.46; 95% CI, 1.06–5.73), homosexual/bisexual sexual orientation (OR, 2.26; 95% CI, 1.06–4.80) and multiple sex partners within the past 12 months (OR, 1.99; 95% CI, 1.03–3.86). There is a high prevalence of STIs among homosexual/bisexual patients in this study in whom syphilis was the most commonly diagnosed STI. Hence more frequent STI screening and targeted HIV/STI prevention efforts to reduce high-risk behaviour are needed.