SynthesisJournal of the International AIDS Society2022
HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men, transgender women and cisgender male sex workers in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Journal of the International AIDS Society, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 31 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prospects of HIV elimination among men who have sex with men: A systematic review of modeling studies.PLoS computational biology · 2026Pooled it
- HIV prevalence in transgender women and cisgender men who have sex with men in sub-Saharan Africa.AIDS (London, England) · 2026Pooled it
- Urine tenofovir testing for real-time PrEP adherence feedback: a qualitative study involving transgender women in Uganda.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2024Trial
- Observational
- When context matters: Multilevel determinants of self-reported sexually transmitted infections symptoms among men engaged in transactional sex in 26 Sub-Saharan African countries.BMC public health · 2026Article
- The Association Between Social Determinants of Health and HIV Risk Behaviors and HIV Testing Among Sexual and Gender Minority Individuals: A National Survey Study.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- Sexually transmitted infection prevalence and Neisseria gonorrhoeae antimicrobial resistance patterns in men who have sex with men with or without urethral discharge syndrome in Johannesburg, South Africa, 2024.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Patterns and correlates of casual sexual behavior through the internet and inconsistent condom use among MSM college students in Zhejiang province, China: a cross-sectional study, 2022.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Observational
- Associations Between Online Casual Sexual Behavior and HIV-Related Risk Behaviors Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in Southeast China: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Predictors of unsuppressed viral load among MSM with HIV in South Africa.AIDS (London, England) · 2025Article
- Understanding the dynamics of sexual and reproductive health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa using the Demographic and Health Survey: the need for longitudinal studies.Reproductive health · 2025Article
- The treatment gap and the HIV care continuum for cisgender men who have sex with men in three South African cities: Findings from a biobehavioural survey, 2019.PLOS global public health · 2025Article
- Comparison of human immunodeficiency virus-related risky sexual behaviors between men who have sex with men only and men who have sex with men and women: A cross-sectional study in Eastern China.Preventive medicine reports · 2024Article
- Population size, HIV prevalence, and antiretroviral therapy coverage among key populations in sub-Saharan Africa: collation and synthesis of survey data, 2010-23.The Lancet. Global health · 2024Article
- Scoping review of HIV-related intersectional stigma among sexual and gender minorities in sub-Saharan Africa.BMJ open · 2024Article
- "I told myself, be bold and go and test": Motivators and barriers to HIV testing among gay, bisexual, and other cis-gender men who have sex with men in Ghana ‒ West Africa.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Article
- Vital Signs: Progress Toward Eliminating HIV as a Global Public Health Threat Through Scale-Up of Antiretroviral Therapy and Health System Strengthening Supported by the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief - Worldwide, 2004-2022.MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionDeveloping effective targets, policies and services for key populations requires estimations of population sizes and HIV prevalence across countries and regions. We estimated the relative and absolute HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men (MSM), transgender women and men, and male and transgender sex workers (MSW and TGSW) in sub-Saharan African countries using peer-reviewed literature.
methodsWe performed a systematic review of peer-reviewed studies assessing HIV prevalence in MSM, transgender women and men, MSW and TGSW in sub-Saharan Africa between 2010 and 2021, following PRISMA guidelines. We searched Embase, Medline Epub, Africa Index Medicus, Africa Journal Online, Web of Science and Google Scholar. We calculated HIV prevalence ratios (PRs) between the study prevalence, and the geospatial-, sex, time and age-matched general population prevalence. We extrapolated results for MSM and transgender women to estimate HIV prevalence and the number living with HIV for each country in sub-Saharan Africa using pooled review results, and regression approximations for countries with no peer-reviewed data. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: We found 44 articles assessing HIV prevalence in MSM, 10 in transgender women, five in MSW and zero in transgender men and TGSW. Prevalence among MSM and transgender women was significantly higher compared to the general population: PRs of 11.3 [CI: 9.9-12.9] for MSM and 8.1 [CI: 6.9-9.6] for transgender women in Western and Central Africa, and, respectively, 1.9 [CI: 1.7-2.0] and 2.1 [CI: 1.9-2.4] in Eastern and Southern Africa. Prevalence among MSW was significantly higher in both Nigeria (PR: 12.4 [CI: 7.3-21.0]) and Kenya (PR: 8.6 [CI: 4.6-15.6]). Extrapolating our findings for MSM and transgender women resulted in an estimated HIV prevalence of 15% or higher for about 60% of all sub-Saharan African countries for MSM, and for all but two countries for transgender women.
conclusionsHIV prevalence among MSM and transgender women throughout sub-Saharan Africa is alarmingly high. This high prevalence, coupled with the specific risks and vulnerabilities faced by these populations, highlights the urgent need for risk-group-tailored prevention and treatment interventions across the sub-continent. There is a clear gap in knowledge on HIV prevalence among transgender men, MSW and TGSW in sub-Saharan Africa.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.