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Density of Drinking Establishments and HIV Prevalence in a Migrant Town in Namibia

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Abstract

Given the established link between alcohol consumption and risk taking behavior, it is plausible that neighborhoods with higher density of drinking establishments will be associated with increased prevalence of HIV. We conducted an ecological study comparing neighborhoods in Luderitz, Namibia, to evaluate this relationship. We observed increased prevalence of HIV comparing high densities of registered and unregistered shebeens, bars, and total number of drinking establishments, as compared with low densities, were associated with increased prevalence of HIV (PR = 3.02, 95% CI: 2.04–4.47; PR = 1.71, 95% CI: 1.42–2.07; PR = 1.55, 95% CI: 1.19–2.02). Our observation of increased prevalence associated with higher densities of drinking establishment’s merits consideration.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Mount Holyoke College Margaret Andrews Winters Award for a research opportunity in the sciences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ministry of Health and Social Services, Lüderitz, Namibia

    Brooke E. Nichols & Davies Nkalamo

  2. Department of Public Health, Division of Biostatics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, USA

    Brooke E. Nichols & Brian W. Whitcomb

  3. Department of Virology, Erasmus Medical Centre, P.O. Box 2040, Rotterdam, CA, 3000, The Netherlands

    Brooke E. Nichols

Authors
  1. Brooke E. Nichols
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  2. Davies Nkalamo
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  3. Brian W. Whitcomb
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Correspondence to Brooke E. Nichols.

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Nichols, B.E., Nkalamo, D. & Whitcomb, B.W. Density of Drinking Establishments and HIV Prevalence in a Migrant Town in Namibia. AIDS Behav 16, 829–834 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-011-9956-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-011-9956-4

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