title: Sexual Networks, Dyadic Characteristics, and HIV Acquisition and Transmission Behaviors Among Black Men Who Have Sex With Men in 6 US Cities.
abstract: The role of sexual networks in the epidemiology of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among black men who have sex with men (MSM) is poorly understood. Using data from 1,306 black MSM in the BROTHERS Study (2009-2010) in the United States, we examined the relationships between multiple sexual dyadic characteristics and serodiscordant/serostatus-unknown condomless sex (SDCS). HIV-infected participants had higher odds of SDCS when having sex at least weekly (odds ratio (OR) = 2.41, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.37, 4.23) or monthly (OR = 1.94, 95% CI: 1.17, 3.24) versus once to a few times a year. HIV-uninfected participants had higher odds of SDCS with partners met offline at sex-focused venues (OR = 1.79, 95% CI: 1.15, 2.78) versus partners met online. In addition, having sex upon first meeting was associated with higher odds of SDCS (OR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.21, 1.83) than was not having sex on first meeting, while living/continued communication with sexual partner(s) was associated with lower odds of SDCS (weekly: OR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.47, 0.85; monthly: OR = 0.60, 95% CI: 0.44, 0.81; yearly: OR = 0.58, 95% CI: 0.39, 0.85) versus discontinued communication. Persons with primary/steady nonprimary partners versus commercial partners had lower odds of SDCS regardless of HIV serostatus. This suggests the need for culturally relevant HIV prevention efforts for black MSM that facilitate communication with sexual partners especially about risk reduction strategies, including preexposure prophylaxis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Jackson State University, School of Public Health, Jackson, MS.
authors.forename: DeMarc A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Hickson
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 North State Street, Jackson, MS, 39213, USA.
authors.forename: Leandro A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Mena
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development, State University of New York at Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, USA.|Faculty of Humanities, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: Leo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wilton
authors.affiliation: New York Blood Center and Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Hong-Van
authors.initials: HV
authors.lastname: Tieu
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention, Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute, New York Blood Center, New York, NY, United States.
authors.forename: Beryl A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Koblin
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), Wellington, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cummings
authors.affiliation: Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Latkin
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Health and Population, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.|The Fenway Institute, Fenway Health, Boston, MA, USA.|Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Kenneth H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Mayer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D002947:Cities; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000208:ethnology*; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000208:ethnology*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000208:ethnology; D012747:Sexual Partners; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: HIV/AIDS; United States; black/African-American men who have sex with men; serodiscordant/serostatus-unknown condomless anal sex; sexual dyads; social networks; urban and rural areas