Correlates of knowledge and use of HIV test kits among women (15-49) in western Uganda.

Abstract

Women remain disproportionally affected by the HIV/ AIDS epidemic because of sociocultural factors including violence perpetrated by intimate partners. HIV is transmitted through contact of infected body fluids with mucosal tissue, blood or broken skin. A study done on university students revealed that increasing age (per year) was significantly associated with HIV test kit use. Women from Western Uganda were selected, and they were asked if they had knowledge and used HIV test kits and hence a variable KAP was created. Other dependent variables like type of place of residence, wealth status, and education level, number of sexual partners, sexual debut and age of the respondent were used to analyze the dependent variable, KAP. All variables were significantly associated with knowledge and use of HIV test kits at bivariate level of analysis (p<0.05). Majority of the women were having no education, did not have knowledge about HIV test kits (83%), and hence did not use them. Women from rural areas (OR=0.8022) were less likely to have knowledge, and to use test kits. Women with more than one sexual partner are more likely (OR=1.2027), women with a sexual debut above 18(OR=0.9557) were less likely to have knowledge about test kits and how to use them. Majority of women in Western Uganda had little knowledge, and had never used HIV test kits. This call for strategies that can help increase the awareness of HIV test kits, and encourage women to use them.