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Marijuana Use as a Sex-Drug is Associated with HIV Risk Among Black MSM and Their Network

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Abstract

Black men who have sex with men (BMSM) are highest risk for HIV seroconversion in the United States. Little attention has been paid to marijuana use among BMSM and potential for HIV risk. A sample of 202 BMSM was generated through respondent driven sampling. The relationship between differential marijuana use and both HIV risk behavior and social network factors were examined using weighted logistic regression. Of the BMSM in this sample 60.4 % use marijuana in general and 20.8 % use marijuana as sex-drug. General marijuana use was significantly associated with participation in group sex (AOR 3.50; 95 % CI 1.10–11.10) while marijuana use as a sex drug was significantly associated with both participation in condomless sex (AOR 2.86; 95% CI 1.07–7.67) and group sex (AOR 3.39; 95% CI 1.03–11.22). Respondents with a moderate or high perception of network members who use marijuana were more likely to use marijuana both in general and as a sex-drug. Network member marijuana use, while not associated with risk behaviors, is associated with individual marijuana use and individual marijuana use in the context of sex is associated with risk practices. Targeting interventions towards individuals and their respective networks that use marijuana as a sex drug may reduce HIV risk.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the study participants for their participation. Research reported in this publication was supported by NCRR U54 RR023560, R01DA033875 and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number UL1 TR000430.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Ethan Morgan, Britt Skaathun & John Schneider

  2. NORC at the University of Chicago, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Stuart Michaels & John Schneider

  3. Section of Infectious Diseases and Global Health, Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, 5841 S. Maryland Avenue, MC 5065, Chicago, IL, 60637, USA

    Lindsay Young, Aditya Khanna, Billy Davis, David Pitrak & John Schneider

  4. National Development and Research Institutes, New York, NY, USA

    Samuel R. Friedman

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  1. Ethan Morgan
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  2. Britt Skaathun
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  3. Stuart Michaels
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  4. Lindsay Young
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  5. Aditya Khanna
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  7. Billy Davis
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  8. David Pitrak
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  9. John Schneider
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The UConnect Study Team

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Correspondence to John Schneider.

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Morgan, E., Skaathun, B., Michaels, S. et al. Marijuana Use as a Sex-Drug is Associated with HIV Risk Among Black MSM and Their Network. AIDS Behav 20, 600–607 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-015-1195-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-015-1195-7

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