An Evolving HIV Epidemic in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region: A Scoping Review

Arvin Karbasi, Judy Fordjuoh, Mentalla Abbas, Chukwuemeka Iloegbu, John Patena, Deborah Adenikinju, Dorice Vieira, Joyce Gyamfi and Emmanuel Peprah ()
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Arvin Karbasi: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
Judy Fordjuoh: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
Mentalla Abbas: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
Chukwuemeka Iloegbu: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
John Patena: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
Deborah Adenikinju: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
Dorice Vieira: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
Joyce Gyamfi: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA
Emmanuel Peprah: Global Health Program, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ISEE Lab, NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway, 4th FL, New York, NY 10003, USA

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 5, 1-23

Abstract: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is severely understudied despite the region’s increase in new HIV infections since 2010. A key population that is particularly affected, due to the lack of adequate knowledge and proper interventional implementation, includes people who inject drugs (PWID). Furthermore, the paucity of HIV data (prevalence and trends) worsens an already critical situation in this region. A scoping review was conducted to address the scarcity of information and to synthesize the available data on HIV prevalence rates within the key population of PWID throughout the MENA region. Information was sourced from major public health databases and world health reports. Of the 1864 articles screened, 40 studies discussed the various factors contributing to the under-reporting of HIV data in the MENA region among PWID. High and overlapping risk behaviors were cited as the most prevalent reason why HIV trends were incomprehensible and hard to characterize among PWID, followed by lack of service utilization, lack of intervention-based programs, cultural norms, lack of advanced HIV surveillance systems, and protracted humanitarian emergencies. Overall, the lack of reported information limits any adequate response to the growing and unknown HIV trends throughout the region.

Keywords: HIV; key populations; people who inject drugs (PWID); Middle East and North Africa (MENA); under-reporting; HIV data (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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