RESEARCH ARTICLE HIV Incidence and Spatial Clustering in a Rural Area of Southern Mozambique

Background Monitoring the HIV epidemic in a defined population is critical for planning treatment and preventive strategies. This is especially important in sub-Saharan Africa, which harbours the highest burden of the disease. Objective To estimate HIV incidence in adults aged 18-47 years old and to investigate spatial varia-tions of HIV prevalence in Manhiça, a semi-rural area of southern Mozambique. Methods Two cross-sectional community-based surveys were conducted in 2010 and 2012 to deter-mine HIV prevalence. Individual participants were randomly selected from the demographic surveillance system in place in the area and voluntary HIV counselling and testing was offered at the household level. HIV incidence was calculated using prevalence estimates from the two sero-surveys. Each participant’s household was geocoded using a global infor-mation system. The Spatial Scan Statistics programme was used to identify areas with dis