Recent HIV Testing Among Young Men Who Have Sex with Men in Bangkok and Chiang Mai: HIV Testing and Prevention Strategies Must Be Enhanced in Thailand

Johnston, Lisa G.; Steinhaus, Mara; Sass, J; Sirinirund, Petchsri; Lee, Catherine; Benjarattanaporn, Patchara; Gass, Robert H.

doi:10.1007/s10461-016-1336-7

Cited by 21 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Unlike other studies, which reported that transactional sex and unprotected (condomless) sexual intercourse were associated with prior HIV testing among MSM [64,65], no such relationships were found in our study. Also, our multivariable analysis showed that alcohol consumption and drug use were not significantly associated with HIV testing, contrary to the finding of an RDS study among 243 YMSM aged 15 to 24 years in Chiang Mai, Thailand [66]. However, we found that increasing number of male sex partners was associated with higher odds of having tested for HIV, a finding similar to that of other studies conducted among MSM in Cameroon, China and other Asian countries [61,67,68].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 62%

Factors associated with HIV testing among young men who have sex with men in Myanmar: a cross‐sectional study

Pham

Aung

Paing³

et al. 2017

J Intern AIDS Soc

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IntroductionIn Myanmar, men who have sex with men (MSM) experience high risk of HIV infection. However, access to HIV testing and prevention services remains a challenge among this marginalized population. The objective of this study was to estimate population prevalence and correlates of prior HIV testing among young MSM (YMSM) and informs the development of HIV testing and intervention programmes that respond to the specific needs of this population.MethodsFive hundred and eighty‐five YMSM aged 18 to 24 years were recruited using respondent‐driven sampling (RDS) in a cross‐sectional survey conducted in six townships of Myanmar. RDS‐adjusted population estimates were calculated to estimate prevalence of HIV testing; RDS‐weighted logistic regression was used to examine correlates of HIV testing in the past 6 months and in a lifetime.ResultsThere were 12 participants who reported receiving a HIV‐positive test; of those, five were tested in the past 6 months. The RDS‐weighted prevalence estimates of lifetime (any prior) HIV testing was 60.6% (95% CI: 53.3% to 66.4%) and of recent (≤ 6 months) HIV testing was 50.1% (95% CI: 44.1% to 55.5%). In multivariable analysis, sexual identity was associated with lifetime but not recent HIV testing. Lifetime and recent HIV testing were associated with having three or more male sexual partners in the past 12 months (adjusted ORs (aORs) = 2.28, 95% CIs: 1.21 to 4.32 and 2.69, 95% CI: 1.59 to 4.56), having good HIV‐related knowledge (aORs = 1.96, 95% CIs: 1.11 to 3.44 and 1.77, 95% CI: 1.08 to 2.89), reporting high HIV testing self‐efficacy (aORs = 13.5, 95% CIs: 6.0 to 30.1 and 9.81, 95% CI: 4.27 to 22.6) and having access to and use of non‐HIV health‐related services in the past 12 months (aORs = 13.2, 95% CIs: 6.85 to 25.6 and 7.15, 95% CI: 4.08 to 12.5) respectively.Conclusions HIV testing coverage among YMSM aged 18 to 24 years old in Myanmar is still suboptimal. Integrated HIV testing and prevention services in existing health service provision systems with tailored HIV information and education programmes targeting YMSM to improve HIV‐related knowledge and self‐efficacy may help to promote regular HIV testing behaviour and contribute to sustainable control of the HIV epidemic among this marginalized population in Myanmar.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 62%

Factors associated with HIV testing among young men who have sex with men in Myanmar: a cross‐sectional study

Pham

Aung

Paing³

et al. 2017

J Intern AIDS Soc

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“…Additionally, apone clients – men who are sexually oriented towards other men but typically do not openly identify as gay – had seven‐times higher risk of HIV positivity at baseline than thange . Across Asia, non‐disclosure of sexual identity has been associated with higher levels of condomless sex and a lower uptake of testing for HIV and STIs , which may explain some of the increased vulnerability to HIV observed among apone clients in this study. Awareness of sexual orientation is an important precursor to provider‐initiated HIV testing , and non‐disclosure of sexual behaviours may hinder the provision of relevant and tailored sexual health information, including assessments of eligibility for biomedical HIV prevention options.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 77%

HIV incidence and factors associated with testing positive for HIV among men who have sex with men and transgender women in Myanmar: data from community‐based HIV testing services

Veronese

Traeger

Oo³

et al. 2020

J Intern AIDS Soc

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Introduction In Myanmar, men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women (TW) are disproportionately affected by HIV, despite national HIV program scale‐up. However, limited HIV surveillance capacity prevents monitoring of epidemic trends and program impact. This study aimed to estimate HIV prevalence and incidence and explore associated sexual risk behaviours among MSM and TW clients attending HIV testing clinics in Myanmar. Methods An electronic data management system was implemented in two community‐based, MSM and TW ‐tailored HIV testing clinics in Myanmar in August 2016. Unique client identifiers enabled prospective monitoring of service engagement, testing frequency and outcomes. We estimated HIV incidence and rate of HIV diagnosis at baseline testing visit among clients over a 15 month period. Correlates of HIV diagnoses were identified using multivariable logistic regression. Results 2794 MSM and TW were tested for HIV. At their baseline test, 38% of clients reported any previous testing and 93% reported being sexually active over the previous three months, with 74% reporting sex with casual male partners and 28% reporting consistent condom use with casual partners. 291 clients tested positive for HIV for the first time at baseline (10.4%; 95% CI: 9.3 to 11.6). Twelve incident cases were detected among 279 clients receiving ≥2 tests (incidence = 10.1 per 100 person‐years; 95% CI: 5.73 to 17.8). HIV diagnosis at baseline was significantly associated with being a transgender woman or a non‐openly disclosing man who has sex with men, age 26 to 39 years, and reporting no testing history. Conclusions High HIV incidence and new diagnoses being associated with reporting no testing history points to undiagnosed HIV driving transmissions in Myanmar. Repeat testing was uncommon. HIV programs in Myanmar must focus on promoting frequent HIV testing alongside adequate coverage of education and primary prevention interventions among MSM and TW.

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“…This prevalence was lower compared to MSM from gay venues and hotspots in Cambodia (65.1%) [10], MSM living in Bangkok or Chiang Mai, Thailand (74.1%) [11], MSM from bar, bathhouse, park, and internet setting in Beijing, China (56.2%) [12] and MSM from bar, brothel and internet setting in Chongqing, China (58.0) [13] but higher than heterosexual men who attended the STI clinics in China (9.3%) [20]. One reason for this phenomenon is probably due to the social movements and advocacy from various interest groups [14] that has led to more research and corresponding delivery of interventions for the MSM [34].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What are the factors associated with human immunodeficiency virus/sexually transmitted infection screening behaviour among heterosexual men patronising entertainment establishments who engaged in casual or paid sex? – Results from a cross-sectional survey in an Asian urban setting

et al. 2016

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BackgroundLate presentation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is associated with heterosexual transmission, particularly among heterosexual men in Asia. Although data on HIV/sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing behaviour is increasing, information is still lacking among heterosexual men who receive far lesser attention and are generally invisible in HIV/ STI prevention, particularly in the Asian urban setting. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of HIV/STI testing among heterosexual men patronising entertainment establishments (EEs) who engaged in casual or paid sex in Singapore, and the factors associated with this behaviour.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional survey involving 604 participants using time location sampling between March and May 2015. For multivariable analysis, we used a mixed effects Poisson regression model with backward stepwise approach to account for clustering by venue and to obtain the adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) for the association of various factors with HIV/STI testing.ResultsAmong 604 at-risk participants, only 163 (27.0%) had gone for HIV or STI testing in the past 6 months. Of this, 83.4% of them specifically underwent HIV testing. In multivariable analysis, HIV/STI testing increased with being non-Chinese (aPR 1.50; 95% CI: 1.08–2.06), having engaged in anal sex with casual or paid partner in the past 6 months (aPR 1.80; 95% CI: 1.27–2.57), number of partners in the past 6 months (aPR 1.03; 95% CI: 1.01–1.05) and HIV knowledge score (aPR 1.11; 95% CI: 1.05–1.16). Among those who reported non-consistent condom use with casual or paid partner, almost half of them (47.9%) perceived that they were at low risk for HIV/STI. Sigmatisation and discrimination was another common barrier for non-testing.ConclusionsDespite being at risk of HIV/STI, the low prevalence of testing coupled with a high prevalence of risky sexual behaviour among this group of heterosexual men in Singapore calls for a need for HIV/STI prevention interventions in the EE setting. Other than promoting testing and safer sex, the interventions should address the discordance between perceived risk and actual sexual behaviour, in addition to the stigma and discrimination associated with testing for this group.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12879-016-2088-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Recent HIV Testing Among Young Men Who Have Sex with Men in Bangkok and Chiang Mai: HIV Testing and Prevention Strategies Must Be Enhanced in Thailand

Cited by 21 publications

References 40 publications

Factors associated with HIV testing among young men who have sex with men in Myanmar: a cross‐sectional study

Factors associated with HIV testing among young men who have sex with men in Myanmar: a cross‐sectional study

HIV incidence and factors associated with testing positive for HIV among men who have sex with men and transgender women in Myanmar: data from community‐based HIV testing services

What are the factors associated with human immunodeficiency virus/sexually transmitted infection screening behaviour among heterosexual men patronising entertainment establishments who engaged in casual or paid sex? – Results from a cross-sectional survey in an Asian urban setting

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