Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Drug Use and Sexual Risk Among Gay and Bisexual Men Who Frequent Party Venues

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
AIDS and Behavior Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Research connecting club drug use to risky sex among gay/bisexual men (GBM) contains methodological issues that have limited knowledge about the relative risks of distinct drugs. This paper reports drug use and sexual behavior data from 197 GBM who frequented at least one party venue within 3 months of participating. Alarming rates of drug use and unprotected anal intercourse (UAI) with casual sex-partners were reported in connection with time spent at a bar, club or circuit party. Structural equation modeling revealed that use of methamphetamine, gammahydroxybutrate (GHB), and/or ketamine (K), but not use of ecstasy, at a party venue helped explain likelihood of UAI with a casual sex-partner while under the influence of a drug during/following time partying (β = 0.41, p < .01). Findings suggest use of methamphetamine, GHB and/or K at party venues increases risk for subsequent UAI with casual sex-partners. Study implications, limitations, and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Resumen

Uso de drogas club conexióninvestigación a relacionessexuales de riesgo entre los hombres gay/bisexuales (GBM) contienecuestionesmetodológicasquetienen un limitadoconocimientoacerca de los riesgosrelativos de lasdistintasdrogas. Este papeldivulga el uso de drogas y comportamiento sexual datos de GBM 197 quefrecuentaban al menos un lugar de fiesta dentro de 3 meses de participar. Registraroníndicesalarmantes de consumo de drogas y relacionessexualesanales sin protección (UAI) con parejasocasionales en relación con el tiempopasado en un bar, club o fiesta del circuito. Modelado de ecuacionesestructuralesrevelóque el uso de metanfetamina, un gammahydroxybutrate (GHB), o la ketamina (K), pero no consumo de éxtasis, en un lugar de fiesta ayudó a explicarprobabilidad de UAI con unapareja sexual casual mientrasestébajo la influencia de unadrogadurante o después de tiempo de fiesta (= 0. 41, p < .01). Resultadossugieren el uso de metanfetamina, GHB o K en los lugares de fiesta aumentariesgo de UAI posterior con parejasocasionales. Se discutenlasimplicacionesdelestudio, limitaciones y recomendaciones para futurasinvestigaciones

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Chesney MA, Barrett DC, Stall R. Histories of substance use and risk behavior: precursors to HIV seroconversion in homosexual men. Am J Public Health. 1998;88:113–6.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  2. Fernandez MI, Bowen GS, Varga LM, et al. High rates of club drug use and risky sexual practices among Hispanic men who have sex with men in Miami. Florida. Subst Use Misuse. 2005;40:1347–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Grov C, Parsons JT, Bimbi DS. Sexual compulsivity and sexual risk in gay and bisexual men. Arch Sex Behav. 2010;39:940–9.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  4. Jerome RC, Halkitis PN, Siconolfi DE. Club drug use, sexual behavior, and HIV seroconversion: a qualitative study of motivations. Subst Use Misuse. 2009;44:431–47.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Koblin BA, Chesney MA, Husnik MJ, EXPLORE Study Team et al. High-risk behaviors among men who have sex with men in 6 US cities: baseline data from the EXPLORE Study. Am J Public Health. 2003;93:926–932

  6. Pappas MK, Halkitis PN. Sexual risk taking and club drug use across three age cohorts of HIV-positive gay and bisexual men in New York City. AIDS Care. 2011;23(11):1410–6.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  7. Shoptaw S, Frosch D. Substance abuse treatment as HIV prevention for men who have sex with men. AIDS Behav. 2000;4(2):193–203.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Stall R, Purcell DW. Intertwining epidemics: a review of research on substance use among men who have sex with men and its connectedness to the AIDS epidemic. AIDS Behav. 2000;4(2):181–92.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Bonell CP, Hickson FC, Weatherburn P, Reid DS. Methamphetamine use among gay men across the UK. Int J Drug Policy. 2010;21(3):244–6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Halkitis PN, Mukherjee PP, Palamar JJ. Longitudinal modeling of methamphetamine use and sexual risk behaviors in gay and bisexual men. AIDS Behav. 2009;13:783–91.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Hirschfield S, Remien RH, Walavalkar I, Chiasson MA. Crystal methamphetamine use predicts incident STD infection among men who have sex with men recruited online: a nested case-control study. J Med Internet Res. 2004;6:41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Shoptaw S, Reback CJ. Associations between methamphetamine use and HIV among men who have sex with men: a model for guiding public policy. J Urban Health. 2006;83(6):1151–7.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Shoptaw S, Reback CJ, Peck JA, et al. Behavioral treatment approaches for methamphetamine dependence and HIV-related sexual risk behaviors among urban gay and bisexual men. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2005;78:125–34.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Kurtz SP. Post-circuit blues: motivations and consequences of crystal meth use among gay men in Miami. AIDS Behav. 2005;9(1):63–72.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Halkitis PN, Parsons JT, Stirratt MJ. A double epidemic: crystal methamphetamine drug use in relation to HIV transmission among gay men. J Homosex. 2001;41(2):17–35.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Carrico AW, Johnson MO, Moskowitz JT, et al. Affect regulation, stimulant use, and viral load among HIV-positive persons on anti-retroviral therapy. Psychosom Med. 2007;69(8):785–92.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Freese TE, Miotto K, Reback CJ. The effects and consequences of selected club drugs. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2002;23:151–6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Tobias MC, O’Neill J, Hudkins M, Bartzokis G, Dean AC, London ED. White-matter abnormalities in brain during early abstinence from methamphetamine abuse. Psychopharmacol. 2010;209:13–24.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Halkitis PN, Palamar JJ. Mulitvariate modeling of club drug use initiation among gay and bisexual men. Subst Use Misuse. 2008;43:871–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Halkitis PN, Palamar JJ, Mukherjee PP. Poly-club-drug use among gay and bisexual men: a longitudinal analysis. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2007;89(2–3):153–60.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  21. Halkitis PN, Parsons JT. Recreational drug use and HIV-risk sexual behavior among men frequenting gay social venues. J Gay Lesbian Soc Serv. 2002;14(4):19–38.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Ramo DE, Grov C, Delucchi K, Kelly BC, Parsons JT. Typology of club drug use among young adults recruited using time-space sampling. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2010;107(2–3):119–27.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  23. Grov C, Kelly BC, Parsons JT. Polydrug use among club-going young adults recruited through time-space sampling. Subst Use Misuse. 2009;44:848–64.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  24. Lewis L, Ross M. A select body: the gay dance party subculture and the HIV/AIDS pandemic. New York: Cassell; 1995.

    Google Scholar 

  25. Mansergh G, Colfax GN, Marks G, Rader M, Guzman R, Buchbinder S. The Circuit Party Men’s Health Survey: findings and implications for gay and bisexual men. Am J Public Health. 2001;91:953–8.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  26. Mattison AM, Ross MW, Wolfson T, Franklin D, HNRC Group. Circuit party attendance, club drug use, and unsafe sex in gay men. J Subst Abuse. 2001;13:119–126.

  27. Lee SJ, Galanter M, Dermatis H, McDowell D. Circuit parties and patterns of drug use in a subset of gay men. J Addict Dis. 2003;22(4):47–60.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. O’Byrne P, Holmes D. Drug use as boundary play: a qualitative exploration of gay circuit parties. Subst Use Misuse. 2011;46(12):1510–22.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  29. Ostrow DG. The role of drugs in the sexual lives of men who have sex with men: continuing barriers to researching this question. AIDS Behav. 2000;4(2):205–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Bux DA. The epidemiology of problem drinking in gay men and lesbians: a critical review. Clin Psychol Rev. 1996;16:277–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Kalichman SC, Tannenbaum L, Nachimson D. Personality and cognitive factors influencing substance use and sexual risk for HIV infection among gay and bisexual men. Psychol Addict Behav. 1998;12(4):262–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Leigh BC, Stall R. Substance use and risky sexual behavior for exposure to HIV: issues in methodology, interpretation, and prevention. Am Psychol. 1993;48:1035–45.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  33. Stueve A, O’Donnell LN, Duran R, San Doval A, Blome JR. Time-space sampling in minority communities: results with young latino men who have sex with men. Am J Public Health. 2001;91(6):922–6.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  34. Valleroy L, MacKeller DA, Karon JM, et al. HIV prevalence and associated risks in young men who have sex with men: young Men’s Survey study group. JAMA. 2000;284:198–204.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. McElrath K, Chitwood DD, Griffin DK, Cornerford M. The consistency of self-reported HIV behavior among injection drug users. Am J Public Health. 1994;84(12):1965–70.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  36. Samuels JF, Vlahov D, Anthony JC, Chaisson RE. Measurement of HIV risk behaviors among intravenous drug users. Br J Addict. 1992;87:417–28.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Catania J, Gibson D, Chitwood D, Coates T. Methodological problems in AIDS behavioral research: influences on measurement error and participation bias in studies of sexual behavior. Psychol Bull. 1990;108:339–62.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. Kalichman SC, Greenberg J, Abel GG. HIV-seropositive men who engage in high-risk sexual behavior: psychological characteristics and implications for prevention. AIDS Care. 1997;9(4):441–50.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. Kauth MR, St. Lawrence JS, Kelly JA. Reliability of retrospective assessments of sexual HIV risk behavior: a comparison of biweekly, three month, and twelve month self-reports. AIDS Educ Prev. 1991;3:207–14.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. Winer BJ. Statistical principles in experimental design. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1971.

    Google Scholar 

  41. Bollen KA, Bauldry S. Three C’s in measurement models: causal indicators, composite indicators and covariates. Psychol Methods. 2011;16(3): 265–284.

  42. Muthén LK, Muthén BO. Mplus User’s Guide. 6th ed. Los Angeles: Muthén and Muthén; 2010.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Solomon TM, Halkitis PN, Moeller RW, Pappas MK. Levels of methamphetamine use and addiction among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men. Addict Res Theory. 2012;20(1):21–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Parrott AC, Milani RM, Parmar R, Turner JD. Recreational ecstasy/MDMA and other drug users from the UK and Italy: psychiatric symptoms and psychobiological problems. Psychopharmocol. 2001;159:77–82.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. Schilder AJ, Lampinen TM, Miller ML, Hogg RS. Crystal methamphetamine and ecstasy differ in relation to unsafe sex among young gay men. Can J Public Health. 2005;96(5):340–3.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Maxwell JC, The Center For Excellence In Drug Epidemiology: The Gulf Coast Addiction Technology Transfer Center. Patterns of club drug use in the U.S., 2004: Ecstasy, GHB, ketamine, LSD, methamphetamine, rohypnol. The Center For Excellence In Drug Epidemiology: Austin; 2004.

  47. McElrath K. MDMA and sexual behavior: ecstasy users’ perceptions about sexuality and sexual risk. Subst Use Misuse. 2005;40(9):1461–77.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  48. Bollen KA. Structural equations with latent variables. New York: Wiley; 1989.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  49. Kline RB. Principles and practice of structural equation modeling. 3rd ed. Guilford Press: New York; 2011.

  50. Alvy LM, McKirnan DJ, Mansergh G, et al. Project Mix Study Group. Depression is associated with sexual risk among men who have sex with men, but is mediated by cognitive escape and self-efficacy. AIDS Behav. 2011;15:1171–1179.

  51. McKirnan DJ, Ostrow DG, Hope B. Sex, drugs and escape: a psychological model of HIV risk sexual behaviors. AIDS Care. 1996;8(6):655–69.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. Kalichman SC, Johnson JR, Adair V, Rompa D, Multhauf K, Kelly JA. Sexual sensation seeking: scale development and predicting AIDS-risk behavior among homosexually active men. J Personal Assess. 1994;62(3):385–97.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. Theodore PS, Achiro RP, Duran RE, Antoni MH. Body dissatisfaction and methamphetamine use among HIV-positive gay and bisexual men: a pilot study. Subst Use Misuse. 2011;46(14):1745–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. Rawson RA, Gonzales RP, Pearce V, Ang A, Marinelli-Casey P, Brummer J. The methamphetamine treatment project corporate authors. Methamphetamine dependence and human immunodeficiency virus risk behavior. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2008;35(3):279–284.

  55. Shoptaw S, Reback CJ, Larkins S, et al. Outcomes using two tailored behavioral treatments for substance abuse in urban gay and bisexual men. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2008;35(3):285–93.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Miller WR, Rollnick S, editors. Motivational interviewing: preparing people to change addictive behavior. New York: Guilford Press; 1991.

    Google Scholar 

  57. Morgenstern J, Bux DA, Parsons J, Hagman BT, Wainberg M, Irwin T. Randomized trial to reduce club drug use and HIV risk behaviors among men who have sex with men. J Consult Clin Psychol. 2009;77(4):645–56.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research study would not have been possible without funding from the American Psychological Association.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clinical Psychology PhD Program, California School of Professional Psychology (CSPP) at Alliant International University, 1000 S. Fremont Avenue, Unit 5, Alhambra, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Peter S. Theodore & Ron E. Durán

  2. Departments of Psychology and Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA

    Michael H. Antoni

Authors
  1. Peter S. Theodore
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ron E. Durán
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Michael H. Antoni
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Peter S. Theodore.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Theodore, P.S., Durán, R.E. & Antoni, M.H. Drug Use and Sexual Risk Among Gay and Bisexual Men Who Frequent Party Venues. AIDS Behav 18, 2178–2186 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-014-0779-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-014-0779-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation