Is Migration a Risk Factor for HIV Spread? HIV Acquisition and Concurrency in Ghana

Susan L. Cassels, University of Washington
Lisa Manhart, University of Washington
Martina Morris, University of Washington

Human migration and partnership concurrency may enhance HIV transmission or perpetuate prevalence disparities between populations. However, these two determinants of HIV transmission are not independent. Return migration and travel may facilitate partnership concurrency in two distinct ways: (1) if an individual has an ongoing partnership at home and an additional partner while away or (2) if the partner left behind has an additional partner while the migrant is away. We assess the associations between migration, HIV infection and concurrency at both the individual and dyad-level (among couples) using data from the 2003 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. On both the individual and dyadic level, migration and travel are generally associated with higher odds of HIV and non-polygynous concurrency, but lower odds of polygynous concurrency. The strongest associations were seen among men who took 10 or more overnight trips within the last year, thus the association might be driven by men who travel frequently.