PubMed · 11363944
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1996-10-18. Condom use.. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11363944/
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The degree to which women are able to control various aspects of their sexual lives is clearly a critical question for health promotion and the prevention of AIDS. It is evident that social factors such as the high rate of rape, the unfavourable economic position of women, and the inability to insist on condom usage make South African women unable to negotiate the timing of sex and the conditions under which it occurs. They are thus rendered powerless to protect themselves against HIV infection. Prevention campaigns often do not take into account the reality of the daily lives of South African women and the difficulties they face gaining control over their own sexual lives. The rampant spread of this disease can only be stemmed if the subordinate position of women is acknowledged and addressed.
BACKGROUND: Sexual acquisition of HIV is influenced by choice of partner, sex act, and condom use. However, current risk-reduction strategies focus mainly on condom use. GOAL: To estimate the contribution of choice of partner, sex act, and condom use on the per-act relative and absolute risks for HIV infection. STUDY DESIGN: Per-act relative risk for HIV infection was calculated with use of estimates of HIV prevalence, risk of condom failure, HIV test accuracy, and per-act risk of HIV transmission for different sex acts. Absolute risks were calculated on the basis of these relative risk estimates. RESULTS: Choosing a partner who tested negative instead of an untested partner reduced the relative risk of HIV infection 47-fold; using condoms, 20-fold; and choosing insertive fellatio rather than insertive anal sex, 13-fold. Choosing one risk-reduction behavior substantially reduces absolute risk of HIV infection for heterosexuals but not for men who have sex with men. CONCLUSION: Clarifying the magnitude of risk associated with different choices may help people make effective and sustainable changes in behavior.