Epidemiological Characteristics of HIV-Infected Women With and Without a History of Criminal Justice Involvement in South Carolina

• NCJ Number: 241778
• Journal: Journal of Correctional Health Care Volume: 19 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2013 Pages: 15-26
• Author(s): Eren Youmans, Ph.D., M.P.H.; James Burch, Ph.D.; Robert Moran, Ph.D.; Lillian Smith, Ph.D.; Wayne A, Duffus, M.D., Ph.D.
• Date Published: January 2013
• Length: 12 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study describes the characteristics and predictors of AIDS disease stage at diagnosis in a cohort of women diagnosed with HIV infection between January 1996 and December 2005.

Abstract

The circumstances that lead to incarceration may potentiate the HIV/AIDS epidemic and this has become an emerging public health concern. In the United States and in most jurisdictions, HIV prevalence in the correctional setting is higher among female inmates than male inmates. This dichotomy is not fully understood and few studies have focused on women in the South. Using data from the South Carolina (SC) electronic HIV/AID Reporting System, the SC Law Enforcement Criminal History database, and a public access Web site of the SC Department of Corrections, the authors describe the epidemiological characteristics and correctional history of a population of HIV-infected women in SC diagnosed between January 1, 1996, and December 31, 2005. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.