Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Age, Gender and Indigenous Ancestry

Data Collection

Enhanced surveillance data between 2005 and 2012 in the Web-enabled Infectious Disease Surveillance System (WebIDSS) was examined for records with evidence of HIV testing. HIV cases were determined by either a positive serology result, on HAART treatment for HIV, or self-reported HIV positive status. Records were reviewed for data quality and consistency. HIV case status was cross tabulated with gender, Indigenous ancestry, and age. Data were extracted June 2016.

Analysis and Results

HIV Cases

A total of 24,353 records with information on HIV status were included in the analysis. Of these, 429 records met the definition for HIV case status (1.76%). Of the 429 HIV cases, 365 (85%) already knew their positive status on admission (78, or 21% were newly diagnosed via routine screening at intake). Of the 64 inmates newly diagnosed with HIV on follow up during their incarceration, 17 had baseline negative serology data (laboratory confirmed seroconversion)^{Footnote 1}.

HIV Prevalence

±-Numbers may not add due to missing data

HIV prevalence was higher among women offenders (3.35% vs 1.65%), higher among inmates of Indigenous ancestry (2.62% vs 1.51%), and highest among inmates 40-49 years of age (3.24%) (see Table 1).

Indigenous Ancestry and Gender

HIV prevalence was highest among women offenders of Indigenous ancestry (6.03%) compared to male inmates of Indigenous ancestry (2.27%) and other women offenders (2.16%) (see Figure 1).

Gender and Age

Among male inmates, the highest HIV prevalence was observed among 40-49 (3.25%) and 50-59 (2.11%) age groups. Among women offenders, the highest HIV prevalence was observed among 30-39 (4.86%) and 40-49 (3.07%) age groups.

Among male inmates of Indigenous ancestry the highest HIV prevalence was observed among 40-49 (4.19%) and 30-39 (2.76%) age groups. Among women offenders of Indigenous ancestry, the highest HIV prevalence was observed among 30-39 (8.88%) and 20-29 (5.75%) age groups.

Summary

The estimated HIV prevalence of 1.76% among inmates in CSC was consistent with previously published reports using other methods^{Footnote 2}. Most (85%) of the burden of prevalence is acquired prior to incarceration at CSC. This analysis demonstrates that particular subgroups (women offenders, inmates of Indigenous ancestry), especially younger women offenders of Indigenous ancestry are at increased likelihood of having HIV.