Mobility as a Differential Factor of HIV Among Female Sex Workers in Belgaum District, Karnataka, India

Abstract

Mobility among female sex workers (FSWs) contributes to increased sexual risk behaviors. Previous studies about the correlation between HIV status and mobility in India are rare. The present authors explore the association between mobility and HIV status among FSWs. Data were obtained from a cross-sectional study conducted in 2008 among FSWs (N = 405) in Belgaum who participated in an integrated biological and behavioral assessment. Analysis was conducted with HIV prevalence as an outcome variable and mobility status as a predictor after controlling for sociodemographic characteristics. A logistic regression model indicates that FSWs who were mobile were more likely to have HIV infection than a local group (odds ratio 1.93, 95% confidence interval 1.17 to 3.22, p < .01). FSWs who have ever practiced sex work in Mumbai were more likely to have HIV (odds ratio 2.10, 95% confidence interval 0.89 to 4.91, p = .03). Thus, there is a need to design HIV interventions for mobile FSWs in India.

KEYWORDS:

• HIV prevalence
• India
• Karnataka
• mobility of FSWs

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors wish to thank the following individuals: the women who participated in this study; Dr. Stephen Moses, Country Director, Karnataka Health Promotion Trust, for approving the use of the data.

Notes

Dhaba is a roadside restaurants located on highways where truck drivers and other motorists stop for food and tea. Sex work occurs in these dhabas, and the women who practice sex work there reside in nearby villages or towns.

In northern Karnataka and southern Maharashtra, there is an ancient tradition called devadasi in which a family dedicates a daughter to a female deity, usually Yellamma. This practice is usually done when the girl is very young. Traditionally, the devadasis lived in the temple and attended to various temple duties. It became customary for devadasis to offer sexual services to the temple priests, which in time extended to other important men in the village. The tradition created a group of rural sex workers who enjoy social sanction for sex work.