Non-Injection Drug Use Linked to Greater HIV Infection Risk
by David Evans
The use of poppers and erectile dysfunction (ED) drugs is strongly associated with recent HIV infection in men who have sex with men (MSM), according to a study presented yesterday at the 2007 National HIV Prevention Conference in Atlanta.
James Carey, PhD, MPH, of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, and his colleagues collected data on 111 MSM in Chicago and Los Angeles who had recently been infected with HIV. Carey’s team compared their data to the records of 333 HIV-negative MSM in the same cities. There were no significant differences between the recently infected men and the HIV-negative men in terms of age, employment, race or ethnicity, or level of education. The recently infected men did tend to have a slightly lower household income.
The recently infected men reported a higher prevalence of having one or more HIV-positive sex partners than the HIV-negative men. Also, men with one or more recently diagnosed sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) were more likely to have been recently infected with HIV.
Carey’s team analyzed the use of drugs and alcohol in both sets of men. The six most frequently reported substances reported by both groups of men included alcohol, poppers, marijuana, methamphetamine, ED drugs like Viagra (sildenafil), and gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB). The recently infected men reported more drug use (except for alcohol and marijuana) during sex than the HIV-negative men. Recently infected men reported more than four times as much poppers usage, and more than three times as much use of methamphetamine and ED drugs.
After controlling for a number of variables, Carey’s team found that the factors most strongly associated with recent HIV infection included unprotected anal intercourse with an HIV-positive partner, having a prior STD, use of poppers, and use of ED drugs.
Source:
Carey JW, Mejia R, Gelaude D, et al. Non-Injection Drug Use, High-Risk Sexual Behaviors, and HIV Seroconversion Risk Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Chicago and Los Angeles [Abstract A05-1]. 2007 National HIV Prevention Conference, Atlanta, 2007.
NEW! Scroll down to comment on this story.
Please click OK to confirm your comment and confirm you accept our posting rules. Note your message will be reviewed by our staff before going live.
Beth Benne, RN, is HIV negative, but
the virus has impacted her life. She currently supervises a biannual HIV/AIDS awareness week as
the director of the student health center at Pierce College, a
community commuter school in Woodland Hills, California.
Woman of the Month is supported by exclusive advertising from Gilead.
Overheard in the Women's Forum
"I recently met a guy who is negative. I did tell him about my status and he decided to kiss me anyway (we didn't go further than that). But a day later, he called and said that he actually had a mouth ulcer that time when we kissed and he was very worried. Asked if he can get the virus from me that way. For that moment, I felt so insulted and yet I felt so bad. It was my first time having a contact with a "negative" guy."
