Disclosure of HIV status to medical providers: differences by gender, "race," and immune function.
OBJECTIVE
The authors used data from a larger study to explore differences by gender, self-reported racial identification, and immune function in disclosure of HIV-positive serostatus to medical providers (dentists, family doctors, and emergency room [ER] and obstetrics-gynecology [ob/gyn] providers).


METHODS
The authors analyzed interview responses from a convenience sample of African American and white men and women receiving HIV medical care at urban hospitals and clinics in St. Louis. Missouri.


RESULTS
Of 179 respondents using at least one of three types of providers, 124 (69%) disclosed their HIV status to all applicable types of providers, 39 (22%) disclosed to only one or two types of providers, and 16 (9%) did not disclose to any of these types of providers. "Race" and CD4 count, but not gender, were independently associated with disclosure to dentists, family doctors, and ER providers in multivariate logistic regression analyses.


CONCLUSIONS
Differences in disclosure rates, especially among patients who may be asymptomatic, suggest a need for public health education of both medical providers and patients with HIV.
Jeffe
D B
DB
Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63108, USA. djeffe@im.wustl.edu
Khan
S R
SR
Meredith
K L
KL
Schlesinger
M
M
Fraser
V J
VJ
Mundy
L M
LM
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008487:Medical History Taking; D008875:Middle Aged; D008923:Missouri; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D012737:Sex Factors; D014342:Truth Disclosure; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data