Mobile Phones and HIV Testing: Multicountry Instrumental Variable Analysis From Sub-Saharan Africa.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Sub-Saharan Africa has been a technological hothouse when it comes to mobile phone technology adoption. However, evidence on the role played by mobile technology on infectious disease prevention has been mostly limited to experimental studies.

Objective

This observational study investigates the role of mobile phone connectivity on HIV testing in sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods

We make use of the novel and comprehensive OpenCelliD cell tower database and Demographic and Health Survey geocoded information for over 400,000 women in 29 sub-Saharan African countries. We examine, through ordinary least square and instrumental variable regressions, whether women's community distance from the closest cell tower influences knowledge about HIV testing facilities and the

SUBMITTER: Iacoella F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11470219 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature