A recent South African study reveals that women who are abused or dominated by their partners are 48 percent more likely to be infected with HIV. According to the study published in the Lancet, conducted by Dr. Kristin L. Dunkle, “Women with violent or controlling male partners are at increased risk of HIV infection.”
In addition, the study states that 58 percent of HIV-positive adults in sub-Saharan Africa are females. According to the study, abusive men are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors, making them more likely to have HIV.
Dunkle is urging that more studies to document the “links between violence, risk behavior, and HIV incidence” are needed and that “research is required on the connections between perpetration of violence, sexual risk-taking, condom refusal, and HIV risk in men.”
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