Unlabelled: Background Men who have sex with men (MSM) in Cameroon consistently face significant stigma and discrimination. The urban HIV prevalence in MSM is estimated at 35%. This study investigates the effect of stigma, discrimination and alienation on Cameroonian MSM's engagement of the HIV treatment cascade.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Men who have sex with men (MSM) are more likely to be living with HIV than other adult men in low- and middle-income countries. MSM experience barriers to accessing HIV services including a lack of available specialized care, and community-level stigma and discrimination. This study aims to examine the uptake of HIV services at non-governmental and community-based organizations (NGOs/CBOs) to identify ways to improve coverage of HIV prevention and treatment among MSM.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Men who have sex with men (MSM) and female sex workers (FSW) are more likely to be living with HIV and experience difficulty accessing HIV health services due to stigma and discrimination. Antiretroviral treatment and sustained viral suppression among individuals living with HIV is the last step in the continuum of HIV care, which has been shown to improve health outcomes and decrease the risk of onward transmission of HIV.
Methods: To calculate the numerator and denominator for antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage estimates among MSM and FSW living with HIV, the Priority Locations for AIDS Control Efforts methods were modified to include individual quantitative interviews, health service assessment and mapping, and size estimation in 7 cities in Cameroon.
Background: Regular HIV testing is vital for timely linkage to the HIV care continuum and ensuring the success of behavioral and biomedical interventions to prevent HIV acquisition. Men who have sex with men (MSM) are a key population for HIV prevention, treatment, and care efforts globally. This study measures the factors associated with prior HIV testing among MSM in Cameroon.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Despite men who have sex with men (MSM) being a key population for HIV programming globally, HIV epidemiologic data on MSM in Central Africa are sparse. We measured HIV and syphilis prevalence and the factors associated with HIV infection among MSM in Cameroon.
Methods: Two hundred and seventy-two and 239 MSM aged ≥ 18 from Douala and Yaoundé, respectively, were recruited using respondent-driven sampling (RDS) for this cross-sectional surveillance study in 2011.
In low- and middle-income countries, men who have sex with men (MSM) are 19 times more likely to be HIV positive compared with background populations. Criminalisation and social rejection of homosexuality in most sub-Saharan African countries reinforce stigma and exclude MSM from prevention activities, including HIV testing. This paper's purpose is to identify factors associated with never having been HIV tested (NHT), among a sample of Cameroonian MSM.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn addition to being the targets of frequent discrimination and violence,African men who have sex with men (MSM) are being hit hard by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Although there is still insufficient research regarding the methods of HIV transmission in sub-Saharan Africa, several studies show that the prevalence of HIV infection among MSM is more than ten times higher than among the general population.
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