Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, immunity and susceptibility among men who have sex with men (MSM), Los Angeles County, USA.

Men who have sex with men (MSM) bear a disproportionate burden of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections. We used serologic data from the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance (NHBS) system to determine the prevalence and correlates of HBV infection, immunization, and susceptibility in a sample of Los Angeles County MSM. Approximately 19 % (95 % CI 15-24 %) had serologic evidence of current or past infection, while 35 % (95 % CI 30-40 %) were susceptible.

Late HIV detection among adult males in Los Angeles County, 2000-2004.

We analyzed HIV surveillance data on white, black, and Latino males diagnosed with HIV between 2000 and 2004 in Los Angeles County (LAC) to identify associations between individual- and community-level factors and late HIV detection by race/ethnicity. We defined late HIV detection as an AIDS diagnosis within 6 months of HIV diagnosis. We conducted multilevel analysis to determine individual- and community-level risk factors associated with late HIV detection stratified by race/ethnicity.

Comparison of demographic and behavioral characteristics of men who have sex with men by enrollment venue type in the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System.

Background: During 2003-2005, the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System (NHBS) enrolled men who have sex with men (MSM) from 12 different venue types in 15 metropolitan areas in the United States. Our goal was to examine whether limiting NHBS enrollment venues to gay bars and dance clubs could increase efficiency without changing the overall results and conclusions.

Methods: We used logistic regression analysis to compare the demographic characteristics and reported HIV risk behaviors among MSM enrolled in gay bars and dance clubs with those enrolled in sex venues and those enrolled in other venues.

Seroprevalence and correlates of hepatitis a among HIV-negative American men who have sex with men.

Background: Hepatitis A outbreaks are well documented among men who have sex with men (MSM). This analysis examines characteristics associated with hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection among a large group of young adult MSM from five USA cities.

Methods: The Young Men's Survey was a cross-sectional prevalence study of HIV infection and related behavioural risk factors among MSM aged 15-29 years during 1994-2000.

Older partner selection, sexual risk behaviour and unrecognised HIV infection among black and Latino men who have sex with men.

Objectives: The authors examine whether young black and Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) who have older sex partners are more likely than those who do not have older sex partners to have unrecognised HIV infection. The authors examine whether the association stems from (1) increased sexual risk behaviour with male partners of any age, (2) heightened risk of being exposed to HIV infection by older partners or (3) a combination of these two factors.

Methods: The analytical sample consisted of 723 black and Latino MSM, aged 18-35 years, who were HIV negative or of unknown serostatus at study entry.

Exploring HIV prevention utilization among female sex workers and male-to-female transgenders.

Female sex worker (FSW) and male-to-female transgender (TGW, transgender women) populations both experience elevated levels of HIV infection and have unique prevention needs because of their stigmatized social status and often-precarious economic circumstances. We analyzed data from 104 FSWs and 128 TGW to assess their level of exposure to active and passive HIV prevention services and identify which subgroups are underserved. Data were collected, in Los Angeles for the cross-sectional 2003-2004 HIV Testing Survey (HITS), through face-to-face interviews with participants recruited primarily from street, club, and social service venues.

Using arrest charge to screen for undiagnosed HIV infection among new arrestees: a study in Los Angeles County.

Despite high documented HIV prevalence, few jail systems offer universal HIV screening, nor is this always feasible. The authors evaluated undiagnosed HIV infection and HIV risk history by arrest charge among 1,322 new arrestees to examine whether specific charges may help prioritize jail-based screening. Undiagnosed HIV prevalence was 2.

Perceptions towards condom use, sexual activity, and HIV disclosure among HIV-positive African American men who have sex with men: implications for heterosexual transmission.

Disproportionately high HIV/AIDS rates and frequent non-gay identification (NGI) among African American men who have sex with men or with both men and women (MSM/W) highlight the importance of understanding how HIV-positive African American MSM/W perceive safer sex, experience living with HIV, and decide to disclose their HIV status. Thirty predominately seropositive and non-gay identifying African American MSM/W in Los Angeles participated in three semi-structured focus group interviews, and a constant comparison method was used to analyze responses regarding condom use, sexual activity after an HIV diagnosis, and HIV serostatus disclosure. Condom use themes included its protective role against disease and pregnancy, acceptability concerns pertaining to aesthetic factors and effectiveness, and situational influences such as exchange sex, substance use, and suspicions from female partners.

Trends in HIV prevalence among public sexually transmitted disease clinic attendees in the Western region of the United States (1989-1999).

Objectives: Using data from anonymous unlinked testing of routinely collected sera, trends in HIV are compared among sexually transmitted disease patients in 4 Western urban centers.

Methods: Between 1989 and 1999, remnant sera obtained for routine syphilis testing from 256,819 patient visits to Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle clinics were tested for HIV antibodies in an unlinked survey. HIV antibody test results were linked to anonymous demographic and risk information abstracted from the medical record.

Associations of race/ethnicity with HIV prevalence and HIV-related behaviors among young men who have sex with men in 7 urban centers in the United States.

Using data from a multisite venue-based survey of male subjects aged 15 to 22 years, we examined racial/ethnic differences in demographics, partner type, partner type-specific condom use, drug use, and HIV prevalence in 3316 US black, multiethnic black, Latino, and white men who have sex with men (MSM). We further estimated associations of these factors with HIV infection and their influence on racial/ethnic disparities in HIV prevalence. HIV prevalences were 16% for both black and multiethnic black participants, 6.

The effect of partner characteristics on HIV infection among African American men who have sex with men in the Young Men's Survey, Los Angeles, 1999-2000.

Previous studies have documented disparities in HIV prevalence by race among men who have sex with men (MSM), even after adjusting for traditional risk factors. In this analysis of data collected for the 1999-2000 Los Angeles Young Men's Survey, a cross-sectional venue-based survey of MSM aged 23-29, we investigated whether information on male sex-partner characteristics accounts for some of the racial/ethnic differences in HIV prevalence. In this sample of survey participants, we observed that African American MSM reported similar or lower levels of HIV risk behaviors compared with White MSM but much higher HIV prevalence (26% vs.

HIV prevalence among foreign- and US-born clients of public STD clinics.

Objectives: We examined differences in HIV seroprevalence and the likely timing of HIV infection by birth region.

Methods: We analyzed unlinked HIV antibody data on 61 120 specimens from 7 public health centers in Los Angeles County from 1993 to 1999.

Results: Most (87%) immigrant clients were Central American/Mexican-born.