307559
A comparison of high risk behaviors among HIV positive men who have sex with men in 2008 and 2011
In Texas, among the people living with HIV/AIDS, men who have sex with men (MSM) are the most common exposure group. This group accounted for 46% of the new HIV infections in Houston/Harris County in 2012. A number of community based organizations (CBOs) have worked over the years to make a change in the high risk sexual behaviors of MSM. This project aims to assess change in the high risk behaviors in this group by comparing 2008 and 2011 National HIV Behavioral Surveillance (NHBS) data.
Methods:
Data collected for the NHBS project in Houston among MSM in 2008 and 2011 was used for this study. Descriptive and inferential analyses were used to compare the high risk behaviors among HIV positive MSM in 2008 and 2011.
Results:
A total of 119 MSM from the 2008 and 94 from 2011 were included in the analysis. Initial analysis showed an upward trend for eight out of the fourteen high risk behaviors identified. .A higher number of MSM who exhibited high risk behaviors reported in 2011 that they have never been tested for HIV. MSM who were interviewed during 2011 were more prone to behaviors that put them at risk of HIV acquisition than those who were interviewed in 2008.
Conclusions:
New HIV prevention strategies should be developed, implemented, and evaluated to target this high risk MSM population.
Learning Areas:
EpidemiologyProtection of the public in relation to communicable diseases including prevention or control
Public health or related research
Learning Objectives:
Describe the prevalence of high risk behaviors among HIV positive MSM.
Compare the trends in high risk behaviors among HIV positive MSM in 2008 and 2011.
Discuss the implications of high risk behaviors among HIV positive MSM.
Keyword(s): HIV Risk Behavior, HIV/AIDS
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am an Epidemiologist specialist with the Bureau of Epidemiology, Houston Department of Health and Human Services. I have over ten years’ experience in disease surveillance and have been involved in research among populations at high-risk for HIV. I have been the project coordinator of the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance (NHBS) program for Houston since the inception in 2003.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.