Poly-club-drug use among gay and bisexual men: a longitudinal analysis.
OBJECTIVE
We sought to delineate patterns of poly-club-drug use among gay and bisexual men. Data were drawn from a large-scale 12-month longitudinal investigation of club drug use and sexual behavior among 450 racially, ethnically, and geographically diverse sample of gay and bisexual men in New York City.


METHODS
Using community-based sampling, we recruited the sample from numerous venues and assessed the self-reported use of five drugs and their relation to one another: cocaine, ecstasy, GHB, ketamine, and methamphetamine. Multivariate hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was utilized to examine associations of usage over the 12-month data collection period.


RESULTS
Use of the five club drugs was highly related as noted by both parametric and non-parametric analyses of the cross-sectional data. Patterns of use over time also indicated significant longitudinal associations. Specifically, the use of methamphetamine over time was related to both the use of ecstasy and GHB.


CONCLUSIONS
The analyses suggest that usage patterns of individual club drugs such as methamphetamine, ecstasy, and GHB among gay and bisexual men are highly related across time. These findings hold implications for the treatment approaches that are utilized to address substance abuse in this segment of the population, and suggest that practitioners focus on the totality of the substance abuse behaviors and not necessarily individual drugs which are administered.
Halkitis
Perry N
PN
Center for Health, Identity, Behavior & Prevention Studies (CHIBPS), Steinhardt School of Culture, Education & Human Development, New York University, 726 Broadway, Suite 525, New York, NY 10003, USA. pnh1@nyu.edu
Palamar
Joseph J
JJ
Mukherjee
Preetika Pandey
PP
D000328:Adult; D001727:Bisexuality / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009519:New York City; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs; D012931:Social Environment; D012932:Social Facilitation; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
D011619:Psychotropic Drugs