Session 8Oral Abstract Presentations Epidemiology Session Day and Time: Tuesday 10 am - 12:15 pm Presentation Time: 10:15 Room: 302-306
37 The Internet and High-risk Sex among Men Who Have Sex with Men M. A. Chiasson1, S. Hirshfield*1, M. Humberstone1, J. DiFilippi1, D. Newstein1, B. Koblin2, R. Remien3,4 1Med and Hlth Res Assn of New York City, Inc; 2Lindsley F Kimball Res Inst of the New York Blood Ctr, NY; 3HIV Ctr for Clin and Behavioral Studies, New York State Psychiatric Inst; and 4Columbia Univ, New York, NY
Background: As HIV transmission among Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM) resurges, efficient methods of reaching large numbers of high-risk men must be identified and new prevention messages developed. The Internet may be an important venue for these activities.
Methods: In June-July 2002, 2,934 men recruited through chat room banners on popular gay Web site completed an anonymous, 60-item online questionnaire about sexual, drug- and alcohol- using behaviors during a recent 6-month period. The small number of women and transgendered respondents were excluded from this analysis; the HIV- group included those testing negative and those untested. Statistical differences were assessed using Chi-square tests.
Results: Respondents represented all 50 states in the U.S., roughly in proportion to the population of each state. Most (80%) reported sex only with men, 19% with men and women, and < 1% only with women. By age group, 46% were 18-29, 46% 30-49 and 8% 50+. Most men were white (85%) and had at least some college education (87%); 7.6% (224) were HIV+. More than 100 lifetime sex partners were reported by 27%, with 6% reporting more than 10 partners in the past 30 days. Most men (84%) met sex partners online and they were more likely to have unprotected anal sex (UAS) than those who met partners in other ways (64% vs 58%, p = 0.02). Most HIV+ men (80%) had HIV- partners and were more likely to report UAS than HIV- men (OR 1.4, p = 0.04). Among those who met partners online, HIV+ men were more likely to report UAS than HIV- men (OR 1.5, p = 0.03). Of the 10 men diagnosed with syphilis during the 6-month period, 9 met sex partners online and 4 reported being HIV+. Overall, 43% reported any illicit drug use and 34% reported drinking until drunk 1-3 days per wk, with no differences by method of meeting partners.
Conclusions: The very high risk sexual behavior and the significant association between meeting a sex partner online and UAS, particularly for HIV+ men, found in this study provide additional evidence that the Internet may play a role in HIV transmission. Similar to other high risk venues of the 1970s and 1980s (e.g., bath houses and back rooms), the Internet may be a setting in which to meet new sex partners and potentially transmit HIV. Our success in rapidly recruiting a large number of men reporting very high-risk sexual behavior from a single Internet site suggests that this recruitment method can also be used to provide urgently needed safer sex messages.
