MATHEMATICAL ANALYSIS OF TRANSMISSION DYNAMICS OF HIV/ AIDS IN RISK STRUCTURED POPULATION.

A model for assessing the impact of key population at risk in spreading HIV/ AIDS is designed. The model is shown to have a globally asymptotically stable (GAS) disease-free equilibrium whenever the associated reproduction number is less than unity. It has a unique GAS endemic equilibrium whenever reproduction number exceeds unity, if there is no back and forth movement in susceptible classes. It is shown that if infected individuals with high risk abandon their risky behavioral practices, then the disease burden will reduce. Furthermore, if infected individuals with low risk do not adopt risky behaviors then the transmission of the disease will decrease. Partial Rank Correlation Coefficient (PRCC) indices are assessed using all the infection-related classes and basic reproduction number of the model. Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results show that controlling the effective contact rate, disease-induced death rate in AIDS stage with low and high risk classes will help controlling the transmission of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]