By Jimmy Downs

Saturday Dec 01, 2012 (foodconsumer.org) -- In China, HIV infection used to be more commonly found in people who used injection drugs.  But a study report in Sexually Transmitted Disease suggests that heterosexual sex plays a major role in HIV transmission in China.

H. Wang of Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, People's Republic of China and colleagues found among female sex workers in China, the HIV infection rate was 1.44 per 100 person-years.

For the study, researchers recruited female sex workers in Kaiyuan city, Yunnan, a southern province of China from March 2006 through Nov 2009. Participants were interviewed and tested for HIV and sexually transmitted diseases every six months.

During the 3.5-year follow-up, 19 incident cases of HIV infection were identified, which was equivalent to an overall incidence of 1.44 per 100 person-years.

Using the multivariate Cox regression model, researchers were able to find the association between HIV infection risk and a few key risk factors including noninjection drug use, inconsistent condom use and the number of sex clients.

Specifically, those who used noninjection drugs, whose clients used condoms inconsistently, and who had 7 more clients in the previous week were 570 percent, 190 percent, and 390 percent more likely to contract HIV infection,  respectively, compared with those who did not have the behavioral issues or those who had fewer clients.

HIV infection is mainly spread through injectable drug use and sex.  HIV carriers may develop AIDS that disables their immune system and kills them eventually even though in developed countries, medications may help slow or delay the progression.

In the U.S., 1 in 139 women will be diagnosed with HIV infection in their lifetime.   Specifically, 1 in 526 white women and Asian women are expected to contract HIV in their lifetime.   For black women and Hispanic/Latina women, the rates are 1 in 32 and 1 in 106 respectively, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.