Hepatitis B virus infection (HBV) and HIV-HBV coinfection among men who have sex with men, transgender women, and genderqueer individuals in Harare and Bulawayo Zimbabwe, 2019
Robin W.B. Breen,
Lauren E. Parmley,
Munyaradzi P. Mapingure,
Innocent Chingombe,
Owen Mugurungi,
Godfrey Musuka,
Avi J. Hakim,
John H. Rogers,
Brian Moyo,
Chesterfield Samba,
Sophia S. Miller,
Matthew R. Lamb,
Tiffany G. Harris
Affiliations
Robin W.B. Breen
Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA; Corresponding author.
Lauren E. Parmley
ICAP at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
Munyaradzi P. Mapingure
ICAP at Columbia University, Harare, Zimbabwe
Innocent Chingombe
ICAP at Columbia University, Harare, Zimbabwe
Owen Mugurungi
Zimbabwe Ministry of Health and Child Care, Harare, Zimbabwe
Godfrey Musuka
ICAP at Columbia University, Harare, Zimbabwe
Avi J. Hakim
Division of Global HIV & TB, Global Health Center, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
John H. Rogers
Division of Global HIV & TB, Global Health Center, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Harare, Zimbabwe
Brian Moyo
Zimbabwe Ministry of Health and Child Care, Harare, Zimbabwe
Chesterfield Samba
GALZ, Harare, Zimbabwe
Sophia S. Miller
ICAP at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
Matthew R. Lamb
Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA; ICAP at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
Tiffany G. Harris
Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA; ICAP at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
Objectives: To measure HIV and Hepatitis B virus (HBV) prevalence and associated risk behaviors among men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women/genderqueer individuals (TGW/GQ) in Zimbabwe. Methods: We conducted a biobehavioral survey using respondent-driven sampling (RDS) among adult MSM and TGW/GQ in Harare and Bulawayo, Zimbabwe in 2019. Participants completed a questionnaire and underwent testing for HIV and HBV. Results: Overall, 1,510 (Harare: 694, Bulawayo 816) participants were enrolled and consented to testing; 3.8 % (58) tested positive for HBV, 22.5 % (339) tested positive for HIV, and 2.2 % (33) tested positive for both HIV and HBV. HBV prevalence was higher among participants with HIV compared to HIV-negative participants (9.7 % vs. 2.1 %, p < 0.0001). Overall, HBV prevalence was not statistically different between MSM and TGW/GQ (3.7 % vs 4.5 %, p = 0.49) nor between Harare and Bulawayo (3.3 % vs 4.3 %, p = 0.33). Conclusions: Our survey demonstrates the prevalence of HBV among MSM and TGW/GQ is lower than other estimates of HBV among MSM in Africa but remains high among our survey population living with HIV highlighting the need to expand HBV testing and treatment services, especially among people with HIV in Zimbabwe.
