Risk of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection in Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2–Seropositive Persons: A Meta‐analysis

To determine the contribution of herpes simplex type 2 (HSV-2) infection to the risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) acquisition, a systematic review of literature and data synthesis were done. Thirty-one studies addressed the risk of HIV infection in HSV-2-seropositive persons. For 9 cohort and nested case-control studies that documented HSV-2 infection before HIV acquisition, the risk estimate was 2.1 (95% confidence interval, 1.4-3.2). Thus, the attributable risk percentage of HIV to HSV-2 was 52%, and the population attributable risk percentage was 19% in populations with 22% HSV-2 prevalence but increased to 47% in populations with 80% HSV-2 prevalence. For 22 case-control and cross-sectional…