title: Timing and duration of incarceration and high-risk sexual partnerships among African Americans in North Carolina.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Incarceration may contribute to HIV transmission by disrupting stable partnerships and promoting high-risk partnerships. We investigated incarceration and high-risk partnerships among African Americans in North Carolina.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a weighted analysis using the North Carolina Rural Health Project (N = 320), a population-based case-control study of HIV among African Americans. We measured associations between timing and duration of incarceration and high-risk partnerships (multiple partnerships or sex trade for money or drugs).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Duration of incarceration appeared to be more important than how long ago incarceration occurred. After adjustment for sociodemographic indicators, high-risk partnerships were associated with short-term (<1 month) incarceration of the respondent versus no respondent incarceration (men: adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) 1.9, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.2-2.8; women: aPR 3.1, 95% CI 1.2-8.3). High-risk partnerships also were associated with incarceration of a partner versus no partner incarceration (men: aPR 1.8, 95% CI 1.1-3.0; women: aPR 2.0, 95% CI 1.1-3.8). Among men, associations remained when adjusting for substance use. Among women, adjustment for substance use weakened estimates due to the strong correlation between substance use and incarceration.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  HIV-prevention programs targeting currently and formerly incarcerated individuals and their partners may decrease HIV in African American communities with high incarceration rates.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC, USA. maria_khan@unc.edu
authors.forename: Maria R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: William C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: Victor J
authors.initials: VJ
authors.lastname: Schoenbach
authors.forename: Sharon S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Weir
authors.forename: Jay S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kaufman
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Wohl
authors.forename: Adaora A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Adimora
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology / Q000635:transmission; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009657:North Carolina / Q000453:epidemiology; D016012:Poisson Distribution; D011329:Prisoners / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012423:Rural Health; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D047568:Unsafe Sex / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*