HCV and HIV prevalences strongly correlated in Asian communities with reservoirs of HIV in high-risk groups.

BACKGROUND In some Asian communities, HIV epidemics initially concentrated in high-risk groups develop into generalized epidemics, while in others HIV epidemics remain confined to high-risk groups. We examined whether blood exposures in a community, as indicated by hepatitis C virus (HCV) prevalence, can account for the variability in HIV prevalence in Asia. METHODOLOGY We searched the published literature for temporally comparable HCV and HIV prevalence estimates for pregnant women and other "low-risk" population segments in Asian communities with established HIV epidemics in injection drug users or prostitute women. We assessed the correlation between HCV and HIV prevalences in these communities. RESULTS HCV and HIV prevalences were strongly correlated (r = .97, p < .001). CONCLUSION This finding suggests that blood-borne transmission drives generalized HIV epidemics in Asia and highlights the need for appropriately designed investigations of transmission modes.