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Estimating the Population Size of Female Sex Worker Population in Tehran, Iran: Application of Direct Capture–Recapture Method

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Abstract

There is no reliable estimate of the size of female sex workers (FSWs). This study aimed to estimate the size of FSWs in south of Tehran, Iran in 2016 using direct capture–recapture method. In the capture phase, the hangouts of FSWs were mapped as their meeting places. FSWs who agreed to participate in the study tagged with a T-shirt. The recapture phase was implemented at the same places tagging FSWs with a blue bracelet. The total estimated size of FSWs was 690 (95% CI 633, 747). About 89.43% of FSWs experienced sexual intercourse prior to age 20. The prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus infection among FSWs was 4.60%. The estimated population size of FSWs was much more than our expectation. This issue must be the focus of special attention for planning prevention strategies. However, alternative estimates require to estimating the number FSWs, reliably.

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Acknowledgements

This study has been adapted from an MSc thesis at Hamadan University of Medical Sciences. The Authors would like to thank all contributors and participants who make this study project possible.

Funding

The study was partially funded by the Vice-chancellor for research and Technology, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences (Grant No. 9403121140).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran

    Manoochehr Karami

  2. Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran

    Manoochehr Karami & Mansour Sajadipoor

  3. Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Salman Khazaei

  4. Research Center for Health Sciences, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran

    Jalal Poorolajal

  5. Modeling of Noncommunicable Diseases Research Center, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran

    Alireza Soltanian

Authors
  1. Manoochehr Karami
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  2. Salman Khazaei
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  3. Jalal Poorolajal
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  4. Alireza Soltanian
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  5. Mansour Sajadipoor
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mansour Sajadipoor.

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Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflict of interest to declare for this study.

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences (UMSHA.REC.1394.56).

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Karami, M., Khazaei, S., Poorolajal, J. et al. Estimating the Population Size of Female Sex Worker Population in Tehran, Iran: Application of Direct Capture–Recapture Method. AIDS Behav 21, 2394–2400 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-017-1803-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-017-1803-9

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