Sociodemographic profile of patients attending the integrated counseling and testing center at a government super-specialty hospital in Central India

• Published in: Indian journal of sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS 2020-01, Vol.41 (1), p.68-72
• Main Authors: Desikan, Prabha, Rangnekar, Aseem, Tiwari, Karuna, Panwalkar, Nikita, Pateriya, Manoj, Rajput, Virendra
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; Age groups; AIDS; Behavior; Counseling; Disease prevention; Disease transmission; Education; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Males; NGOs; Nongovernmental organizations; Original; Secondary schools; Sex industry; Sociodemographics; Studies; Trends
• ISSN: 2589-0557; 2589-0565
• DOI: 10.4103/ijstd.IJSTD_52_17

Context: The HIV epidemic continues to be a matter of concern worldwide. Integrated counseling and testing center (ICTC) is an opening wedge for HIV diagnosis and support services, especially to the high-risk groups. Counseling and testing is a cost-effective and simple way of reducing HIV transmission. Aims: The aim of the study was to analyze the sociodemographic profiles of the ICTC attendees to evaluate the changing trends of HIV seropositivities over a period of 7 years. Settings and Design: This was a retrospective study done in the ICTC housed in a tertiary care hospital at Bhopal. Materials and Methods: All attendees in the period of 7 years were included. Statistical analysis used: percentages and proportions were calculated. Results: There were 24,853 ICTC attendees from January 2009 to January 2016, of which 183 (6.41%) attendees were tested seropositive. There were 15,555 (62.5%) males and 9298 (37.5%) female attendees. Among 15,555 males, 151 (0.97%) were seropositive, and of 9298 females, 32 (0.34%) were seropositive. Of 151 seropositive males, 62 (41%) were in the age group of 19-30 years and 48 (31.7%) were in the age group of 31-40 years. Among the seropositive females, 9 (28.1%) were in the age group of 19-30 years and 10 (31.2%) were in the age group of 31-40 years. We observed a rise in total number of ICTC attendees from January 2009 to January 2016. The number of attendees increased to 4655 in 2013, of which 27 (0.58%) were seropositive, and by 2015, there were 4982 attendees with only 6 (0.12%) seropositives. Conclusion: Such rising trends of attendees and a steady decline in the seropositivity rates are encouraging signs, reflecting the contribution of the ICTC in creating awareness, and reducing the transmission of HIV among the population served.