The rates of incident HIV infection and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are high among very young men who have sex with men (MSM) and indicate the need for clinical intervention, according to research published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
Robert Garofalo, MD, MPH, from the Division of Adolescent Medicine at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and the Department of Pediatrics at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University, and colleagues, conducted a longitudinal study of HIV risk among young MSM in the Chicago area. Data from 450 participants were analyzed; all participants were between the ages of 16 and 20. About 83% of subjects were non-white; 25% were younger than age 18.
The researchers found 26 new HIV infections during the course of 632 person-years of follow-up. HIV incidence was 4.11/100 person-years, and STI incidence was 6.22/100 person-years. Cumulative HIV incidence over 24 months of follow-up was 7.32%.
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“Non-white race and recent sexual partner concurrency were associated with both HIV and STI infection; HIV testing history and sex with an HIV-positive partner were associated with increased risk of HIV infection,” concluded Dr Garofalo.
Reference
- Garofalo R, Hotton AL, Kuhns LM, et al. Incidence of HIV infection and sexually transmitted infections and related risk factors among very young men who have sex with men. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr. 2016;72(1):79-86
