HIV-1 and HIV-2 Infections Among U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers Returning from West Africa

Abstract

Background: The risk of acquiring HIV-1 and HIV-2 infections among expatriates in, and travelers to, West Africa is not known. The objective of the study was to examine the risk of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and type 2 (HIV-1 and HIV-2) infections among Peace Corps volunteers in West Africa. Methods: A cross-sectional serosurvey was carried out in 18 West African countries. Subjects were 2491 returning Peace Corps volunteers. The main outcome measure was seropositivity for HIV-1 and HIV-2 antibodies. Results: From March 1988 through February 1993, of 2491 study participants, no HIV-2 infections were detected, but three HIV-1 infections were. All three HIV-1-infected persons reported having had unprotected sex with host-country national partners. Conclusions: Results suggest that although persons having unprotected sex with partners from countries with a high prevalence of HIV-1 are at risk for acquiring the infection, casual transmission of HIV-1 or HIV-2 is extremely unlikely.

Prevention of infectious diseases among international pediatric travelers: Considerations for clinicians

“…10 Other infectious diseases reported in travelers include hepatitis A and B, sexually transmitted diseases, animal bites with risk of rabies, typhoid, cholera, legionellosis, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, and meningococcal disease. 3,[11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27] Less specific information is available on the number of children traveling internationally or living abroad. Extrapolating from overseas travel data for U.S. residents, one can estimate conservatively that at least 1.9 million children travel overseas annually (ie, 7% of the 26.9 million U.S. residents traveling internationally in 2000 reported traveling with children).…”

Humanitarian Aid Workers

“…Data regarding HIV infection in travelers or humanitarian workers are scarce. The data that do exist suggest a very low rate of transmission, 9,21 though some data are old and may not be representative.…”