Victimization, Substance Use, Depression, and Sexual Risk in Adolescent Males Who Have Sex with Males: A Syndemic Latent Profile Analysis

Interruptions in Mental Health Care, Cannabis Use, Depression, and Anxiety during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Findings from a Cohort of HIV-Positive and HIV-Negative MSM in Los Angeles, California

“…People living with HIV and those at increased risk for HIV are at high risk for other health problems, including substance use, mental health issues, and socioeconomic vulnerabilities [1][2][3] The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting efforts to curb the spread of infection-such as stay-at-home orders and physical Abstract The objective was to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health care, cannabis use, and behaviors that increase the risk of STIs among men living with or at high risk for HIV. Data were from mSTUDY -a cohort of men who have sex with men in Los Angeles, California.…”

Bullying Victimization and STIs: Parental Communication and Parental Sexual Communication as Moderators

“…This finding suggests that victims of bullying may resort to risky behaviors in an effort to cope with psychological distress that accompanies their victimization experiences (Maniglio, 2015). As prior studies have shown, adolescents who resort to risky behavior such as unsafe sex practices are at a heightened risk for acquiring STIs (Hertz et al, 2015; Holt et al, 2013; Okumu et al, 2017; Robinson & Espelage, 2013; Turpin et al, 2021).…”

“…For instance, Hertz et al (2015) found that bullying victimization was positively associated with nearly all health-risk behaviors and conditions, including forced sexual intercourse. Turpin et al’s (2021) study reported that bullying victimization was related to greater substance use during sex and more sex partners. Okumu et al’s (2017) findings also showed that bullying victimization was positively correlated with HIV risk.…”

“…Compared to youth of other racial/ethnic groups, African American youth are more likely to reside in racially segregated communities that are economically disinvested, experience racial discrimination, and report greater exposure to neighborhood violence and lower access to health care (Gaylord-Harden, Barbarin, Tolan, & Murry, 2018; Voisin, Jenkins, & Takahashi, 2011). Emerging albeit limited body of empirical research also shows a significant linkage between bullying victimization and the acquisition of STIs among adolescents; that is, adolescents who report being victimized by their peers are at heightened risk of engaging in risky sexual behaviors and acquiring STIs (Hertz, Everett Jones, Barrios, David-Ferdon, & Holt, 2015; Holt, Matjasko, Espelage, Reid, & Koenig, 2013; Okumu, Mengo, Ombayo, & Small, 2017; Robinson & Espelage, 2013; Turpin, Salerno, Rosario, & Boekeloo, 2021). For instance, Hertz et al (2015) found that bullying victimization was positively associated with nearly all health-risk behaviors and conditions, including forced sexual intercourse.…”

Mapping LGBTQ+ Youth Resource Density Across Four High HIV Prevalence Corridors in the US

“…In parallel, a lack of tailored, LGBTQ+ -focused, or welcoming general health and support services can perpetuate sexuality-based stigma, creating additional barriers that can discourage AGBMSM from accessing important in-person services and resources (Fisher et al, 2018;McInroy et al, 2019;Pantelic et al, 2019). Thus, reduced access to appropriate services and support represents an important structural vulnerability that may intensify the cognitive and behavioral risk factors that, in turn, contribute to this population's disproportionate HIV burden (Arreola et al, 2015;Hill et al, 2020;Watson et al, 2020), increased STI risk (Poteat et al, 2019), and poor mental health outcomes that are endemic among AGBMSM (Eisenberg et al, 2019(Eisenberg et al, , 2020Turpin et al, 2020).…”