Ongoing Risk Behavior Among Persons With HIV in Medical Care

Abstract

We surveyed randomly selected patients in the largest HIV clinic in Seattle, WA in 2005 and 2006. A total of 397 patients completed usable surveys. Twenty-seven percent of men who have sex with men (MSM) and 22% of women or heterosexual men reported having non-concordant unprotected anal or vaginal intercourse in the preceding year. Compared to 2005, more MSM in 2006 reported meeting a sex partner via the Internet (15% vs. 33%), and fewer met partners in bathhouses (23% vs. 13%). Twenty-four percent of MSM reported deciding not to have sex with a potential partner because he was HIV negative, and 31% of MSM reported that another man had decided not to have sex with them because they were HIV positive. Among all participants, 22% had told a sex partner they were HIV negative since their HIV diagnosis. These findings demonstrate the persistence of high-risk behavior among persons with HIV, a rapid increase in the use of the Internet among MSM to find sex partners, and provide direct evidence for serosorting among MSM.