AEGiS-15IAC: Disclosure of serostatus and unprotected anal intercourse in HIV+ Latino gay men.

15th International AIDS Conference

Bangkok, Thailand - July 11-16, 2004

Disclosure of serostatus and unprotected anal intercourse in HIV+ Latino gay men.

Int Conf AIDS 2004 Jul 11-16; 15:(abstract no. C10137)

Zea MC, Poppen PJ, Reisen CA, Bianchi FT, Echeverry JJ
George Washington University, Washington, DC, United States

BACKGROUND: Communication about HIV status between sex partners and subsequent decisions about sexual behavior are important public health issues. This study examined disclosure of HIV-status by Latino, HIV-positive gay men and their sexual partners and explored the relationship between knowledge of serostatus and unprotected anal intercourse (UAI).

METHOD: A survey was administered using Audio-CASI to a sample of 301 Latino HIV-positive gay and bisexual men from New York, Washington, and Boston, in either Spanish or English according to the participant's preference.

RESULTS: We examined the likelihood of UAI between our seropositive participants and their most recent partners. When neither partner knew the other's serostatus, 32.4% reported UAI. When the serostatus of both partners was known, UAI was more likely (47.3%). This higher rate was largely due to differences based on seroconcordance. There was UAI in 56.6% of the couples when the partner was positive and in 62.9% when the partner was both positive and the main partner (rather than a casual partner). In contrast, in serodiscordant couples, only 34.2% reported UAI, with a further reduction to 27.3% when the partner was a casual sex partner.

CONCLUSIONS: Disclosure of HIV status provides information that enables gay and bisexual men to manage sexual risk for themselves and their partners. The likelihood of UAI was greatest when there was seroconcordance, especially between main partners. In this situation, the men may be assessing the risk as relatively low, only co-infection. In addition, emotional factors may motivate couples to have unprotected sex. In contrast, UAI was much lower when neither partner knew the other's status and when there was serodiscordance. In both these situations, the men acted as though they perceived the risks as higher, and therefore were less likely to engage in UAI.

Keywords: AEGIS, Homosexuality, Male, Unsafe Sex, HIV Seropositivity, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, Bisexuality, Sexual Partners, Sexual Behavior, Disclosure, Coitus, Hispanic Americans, Self Disclosure, Attitude, Data Collection, Boston, Washington, New York, Humans, Male

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C10137