HIV risk behaviours among male-to-female transgenders in comparison with homosexual or bisexual males and heterosexual females

Abstract

Issues and concerns among six directors, one counsellor and one consultant for transgender programmes in San Francisco are described. Additionally, 173 clients who were enrolled in programmes in eight AIDS service organizations were interviewed using a structured survey questionnaire. This study examined the relationships between HIV risk behaviours and social and cognitive factors among transgendered females (male-to-female transgenders) (n=25) in comparison with homosexual or bisexual males (n=122) and heterosexual females (n=26). Transgendered females engaged in riskier behaviours than the other groups in terms of the number of sex partners in the past 30 days and the past six months, commercial sex activities, and having a steady sex partner who injected drugs. Adverse socioeconomic conditions and transgender-specific risk behaviours such as injecting hormones in relation to HIV risk behaviours must be targeted by future intervention studies.