Abstract
Introduction: AIDS is a global challenge. By looking deeper into the nature of AIDS and its transmission, it can
be concluded that AIDS is a social phenomenon rather than a completely biological disease and the results of
studies show a significant relationship between the risk of HIV infection and some underlying factors such as
demographic, social, economic and cultural factors. Today, these structural and social factors are known as social
determinants of health (SDH). The current systematic study aimed to identify SDH related to AIDS in Iran, in order
to adopt appropriate strategies to prevent AIDS in Iran.
Methods: All studies in Persian or English focusing on the relationship between societal health and AIDS
conducted in Iran were systematically reviewed from PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science and internal
databases (IranMedex, SID and Magiran) by December 2018. In order to evaluate the quality of the articles, the
STORBE checklist was used and, after reviewing the articles, finally, out of a total of 964 articles, 18 papers were
selected to enter into the study.
Results: In this systematic review, 12 articles were performed on people at risk for AIDS, while 6 articles were
conducted on patients with positive HIV/AIDS. Based on the WHO model, the determinants of social well-being
in this study were structural determinants of heath; (gender, educational level, occupational status, income and
housing) and intermediate determinants of heath (marital status, high-risk behaviors, awareness, attitude about
AIDS, social support status, access to the Internet and satellite, and history of child sexual abuse).
Conclusion: The main risk factors for HIV infection in Iran (intravenous opium and unsafe sexual intercourse) were
related to social, economic and behavioral factors. Therefore, it is essential to consider SDH as the key factors in
the emergence and control of AIDS by health policy-makers and relevant authorities for the prevention of AIDS