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MSM and Drug Use: A Latent Class Analysis of Drug Use and Related Sexual Risk Behaviors

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Abstract

This study examined patterns of drug use among gay men and other men who have sex with men (MSM) to identify sub-categories of men whose drug use and sexual behavior place them at especially high risk for HIV. A latent class analysis of a sample of MSM yielded a four-class model with two distinct high drug use sub-groups: one whose drug use concentrated on “sex-drugs” (SDU); and a distinct polydrug use class that showed higher probabilities of using all other drugs assessed. Comparative follow-up analyses indicated the SDU group was also more likely to engage in particular potentially high-risk sexual behaviors, be older, and to be HIV positive. Implications of distinguishing between patterns of drug use for HIV-risk prevention efforts with MSM are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

Data used in this study were collected as part of an HIV prevention and health promotion project for MSM funded by the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) STD/HIV/AIDS Division as part of their Special Projects of Innovative Significance (SPInS) funding program. Participating agencies included: the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, the Test Positive Aware Network, Howard Brown Health Center, and the Center on Halsted. Points of view and opinions contained within this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the participating agencies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jane Addams College of Social Work, University of Illinois, 1040 W. Harrison Street, MC 309, Chicago, IL, 60607, USA

    David McCarty-Caplan, Ian Jantz & James Swartz

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  1. David McCarty-Caplan
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  2. Ian Jantz
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  3. James Swartz
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Correspondence to David McCarty-Caplan.

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McCarty-Caplan, D., Jantz, I. & Swartz, J. MSM and Drug Use: A Latent Class Analysis of Drug Use and Related Sexual Risk Behaviors. AIDS Behav 18, 1339–1351 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-013-0622-x

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