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HIV and STIs Among MSM in Tajikistan: Laboratory-Confirmed Diagnoses and Self-Reported Testing Behaviors

  • S.I. : Capacity for Community LMI Country MSM
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Abstract

Little is known about the prevalence and associations of HIV/STI diagnoses and testing behaviors among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Tajikistan. A non-governmental organization conducted a cross-sectional study of MSM (n = 502) assessing laboratory-confirmed HIV/STI diagnoses, HIV/STI testing behavior in the past 6 months, sociodemographics, HIV/STI risk factors, and victimization/discrimination. Overall, 2.6 % were diagnosed with HIV, 2.2 % with syphilis, 17.6 % with chlamydia, and 56.0 % with herpes. Recent testing rates were low for HIV (35.9 %) and STIs (14.1 %). Compared to MSM who completed university, MSM with a high school education or less had lower odds of recent HIV and STI testing; however, victimization and healthcare discrimination were associated with greater odds of recent STI testing. Given the low HIV prevalence, there is a window of opportunity to extinguish the epidemic before it worsens. Non-governmental organizations are indispensable for expanding testing strategies because they can efficiently reach MSM in Tajikistan.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by amfAR (awards 109047 and 108805). Mr. Coulter was partially supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (F31DA037647), Mr. Uzzi and Dr. Matthews were partially supported by the National Institute for Mental Health (T32MH094174). This article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of amfAR or the National Institutes of Health.

Funding

This study was supported by amfAR (109047-56-HAMM and 108805-55-HAMM), with partial support from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (F31DA037647) and the National Institute for Mental Health (T32MH094174). This article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of amfAR or the National Institutes of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Equal Opportunities, 38 a. A. Savdo Street, Dushanbe, Tajikistan

    Kiromiddin Gulov

  2. Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, 130 DeSoto Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA

    Robert W. S. Coulter, Mudia Uzzi & Ron Stall

  3. Center for LGBT Health Research, University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, 130 DeSoto Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA

    Robert W. S. Coulter, Derrick D. Matthews, Mudia Uzzi & Ron Stall

  4. Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, 130 DeSoto Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA

    Derrick D. Matthews

Authors
  1. Kiromiddin Gulov
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  2. Robert W. S. Coulter
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  3. Derrick D. Matthews
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  4. Mudia Uzzi
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  5. Ron Stall
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kiromiddin Gulov.

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Conflict of Interest

All authors have no conflicts of interest.

Ethical Approval

All study procedures were approved by both the Bioethics Committee of the Academy of Medical Sciences through the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare of the Republic of Tajikistan and the University of Pittsburgh’s Institutional Review Board. Therefore, all procedures were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and national research committees and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Gulov, K., Coulter, R.W.S., Matthews, D.D. et al. HIV and STIs Among MSM in Tajikistan: Laboratory-Confirmed Diagnoses and Self-Reported Testing Behaviors. AIDS Behav 20 (Suppl 3), 341–349 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-016-1457-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-016-1457-z

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