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A comparative assessment of the quality of age at first sex and age at first marriage reporting in three HIV cohort studies in sub-Saharan Africa

A comparative assessment of the quality of age at first sex and age at first marriage reporting in three HIV cohort studies in sub-Saharan Africa
A comparative assessment of the quality of age at first sex and age at first marriage reporting in three HIV cohort studies in sub-Saharan Africa
OBJECTIVES: To assess inconsistencies in reported age at first sex (AFS) and age at first marriage (AFM) in three African cohorts, and consider their implications for interpreting trends in sexual and marital debut.

METHODS: Data were analysed from population-based cohort studies in Zimbabwe, Uganda and South Africa with 3, 10 and 4 behavioural survey rounds, respectively. Three rounds over a similar time frame were selected from each site for comparative purposes. The consistency of AFS and AFM reports was assessed for each site by comparing responses made by participants in multiple surveys. Respondents were defined as unreliable if less than half of all their age-at-event reports were the same. Kaplan-Meier functions were used to describe the cumulative proportion (1) having had sex and (2) married by age, stratified by sex, birth cohort and site, to compare the influence of reporting inconsistencies on these estimates.

RESULTS: Among participants attending all three comparable rounds, the percentage with unreliable AFS reports ranged from 30% among South African women to 56% among Zimbabwean men, with similar patterns observed for AFM. Inclusion of unreliable reports had little effect on estimates of median age-at-event in all sites. There was some evidence from the 1960-9 birth cohort that women in Uganda and both sexes in South Africa reported later AFS as they aged.

CONCLUSION: Although reporting quality is unlikely to affect comparisons of AFS and AFM between settings, care should be taken not to overinterpret small changes in reported age-at-event over time within each site.
1368-4973
56-63
Wringe, A.
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Cremin, I.
3ec39727-f8cb-4637-adf1-caadf35af735
Todd, J.
8d0d2b35-64af-4912-a34f-01cd6b174eb2
McGrath, N.
b75c0232-24ec-443f-93a9-69e9e12dc961
Kasamba, I.
0fb8664f-4c01-4172-893f-4f18b225c466
Herbst, K.
2f558167-fbfc-478f-9170-f632d1bcfa9b
Mushore, P.
4e02edb4-23cc-478f-a95d-2d2e25ea7258
Zaba, B.
e6c30ee3-64fb-4d0f-8602-599ff1e79043
Slaymaker, E.
d704cada-49fc-404a-8b76-4877cd242866
Wringe, A.
73e722b2-c6b3-44c9-8336-eae2b28a1cd4
Cremin, I.
3ec39727-f8cb-4637-adf1-caadf35af735
Todd, J.
8d0d2b35-64af-4912-a34f-01cd6b174eb2
McGrath, N.
b75c0232-24ec-443f-93a9-69e9e12dc961
Kasamba, I.
0fb8664f-4c01-4172-893f-4f18b225c466
Herbst, K.
2f558167-fbfc-478f-9170-f632d1bcfa9b
Mushore, P.
4e02edb4-23cc-478f-a95d-2d2e25ea7258
Zaba, B.
e6c30ee3-64fb-4d0f-8602-599ff1e79043
Slaymaker, E.
d704cada-49fc-404a-8b76-4877cd242866

Wringe, A., Cremin, I., Todd, J., McGrath, N., Kasamba, I., Herbst, K., Mushore, P., Zaba, B. and Slaymaker, E. (2009) A comparative assessment of the quality of age at first sex and age at first marriage reporting in three HIV cohort studies in sub-Saharan Africa. Sexually Transmitted Infections, 85, supplement 1, 56-63. (doi:10.1136/sti.2008.033423). (PMID:19307342)

Record type: Article

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To assess inconsistencies in reported age at first sex (AFS) and age at first marriage (AFM) in three African cohorts, and consider their implications for interpreting trends in sexual and marital debut.

METHODS: Data were analysed from population-based cohort studies in Zimbabwe, Uganda and South Africa with 3, 10 and 4 behavioural survey rounds, respectively. Three rounds over a similar time frame were selected from each site for comparative purposes. The consistency of AFS and AFM reports was assessed for each site by comparing responses made by participants in multiple surveys. Respondents were defined as unreliable if less than half of all their age-at-event reports were the same. Kaplan-Meier functions were used to describe the cumulative proportion (1) having had sex and (2) married by age, stratified by sex, birth cohort and site, to compare the influence of reporting inconsistencies on these estimates.

RESULTS: Among participants attending all three comparable rounds, the percentage with unreliable AFS reports ranged from 30% among South African women to 56% among Zimbabwean men, with similar patterns observed for AFM. Inclusion of unreliable reports had little effect on estimates of median age-at-event in all sites. There was some evidence from the 1960-9 birth cohort that women in Uganda and both sexes in South Africa reported later AFS as they aged.

CONCLUSION: Although reporting quality is unlikely to affect comparisons of AFS and AFM between settings, care should be taken not to overinterpret small changes in reported age-at-event over time within each site.

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e-pub ahead of print date: April 2009
Organisations: Faculty of Health Sciences

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Local EPrints ID: 350315
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/350315
ISSN: 1368-4973
PURE UUID: 7a87f788-3cd3-416d-b529-ce1f74cf6799
ORCID for N. McGrath: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-1039-0159

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Date deposited: 21 Mar 2013 14:30
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:46

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Contributors

Author: A. Wringe
Author: I. Cremin
Author: J. Todd
Author: N. McGrath ORCID iD
Author: I. Kasamba
Author: K. Herbst
Author: P. Mushore
Author: B. Zaba
Author: E. Slaymaker

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