Socioeconomic status, women and HIV: do the determinants of female HIV vary by SES in Cameroon?

Joyce N. Mumah, Utah State University

One of the most consistent findings in social epidemiology is an inverse relationship between indicators of SES and most types of illness. In most cases, the incidence of HIV follows this classic pattern, with the poor having the greatest risk of infection and eventual mortality. However, a growing body of research on HIV in SSA suggests an intriguing reversal of this pattern. Further review of this literature presents us with a paradox in which both low SES and high SES individuals (especially women) seem to present increased risks of HIV, but mechanisms of risk appear to be distinct for each group. Using the 2004 CDHS data, this paper will explore relationships between various indicators of SES and HIV, with the results of these initial analyses used to estimate a series logistic regression models designed to highlight the distinct causal pathways that put higher SES women at increased risk of HIV.