ORIGINAL STUDY Young Women Engaged in Sex Work in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Have High Incidence of HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections, and Amphetamine- Type Stimulant Use: New Challenges to HIV

Objectives: To estimate prevalence and incidence of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STI) and associated risk factors among young women working as sex workers (SWs) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Methods: A prospective study of young (29 years) women work-ing as SWs in brothels, entertainment establishments, and freelance. Sociodemographics, sexual risk, and use of amphetamine-type stimu-lants (ATS) (“yama ” and “crystal”) were assessed by self-report. HIV and STI (Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae) testing were conducted on blood and urine specimens, respectively. Results: Baseline prevalences of HIV, C. trachomatis, and N. gon-orrhoeae were 23%, 11.5%, and 7.8%, respectively. HIV incidence was 3.6 per 100 person-years (95 % confidence interval [CI], 1.2%– 11.1%); STI incidence was 21.2 per 100 person-years (95 % CI, 12.6%– 35.8%). At baseline, 26.5 % reported recent ATS use. HIV infection was associated with freelance SW (adjusted odds ratio, 5.85; 95 % CI