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Williams, Bowen, Timpson, Ross, and Atkinson (2006) randomized a targeted sample of 112 street-based male sex workers to one of two brief HIV risk reduction interventions: a two-session "standard" information and skills-building intervention or a two-session "standard-plus" intervention offering the same information and skills, but designed to increase intentions to use condoms during anal intercourse with paying partners. Data were collected at baseline, at 1 month postintervention, and at 3 months postintervention. The investigators found that "[c]ondom use during paid anal sex increased postintervention. In addition, condom use intentions, positive condom use outcome expectations, and condom use normative expectations increased preintervention to postintervention. However, there were no significant differences between the standard and the standard-plus brief interventions in any of the outcomes measured" (p. 204). Although conclusions cannot be generalized beyond this targeted sample, "at least some street-based [male sex workers] ... can be engaged in brief HIV risk reduction interventions and are able to ... [reduce] sexual risk behaviors after participating in an intervention" (p. 214).
French investigators (Bouhnik et al., 2006) interviewed 607 gay men living with HIV who acknowledged that they had engaged in sexual activity with casual partners during the preceding 12-month period; 140 (20%) of these men acknowledged that at least one of these encounters included unprotected anal intercourse. Importantly, "[p]oor mental HRQL [health-related quality of life] was encountered in 68% of the patients and found to be independently associated with unsafe sex, even after multiple adjustment[s] for number of partners, occurrences of binge drinking, use of anxiolytics, use of the Internet, and use of outdoor and commercial venues for sexual encounters" (p. 597). The investigators conclude that "[r]isky sexual behavior with casual partners is frequent among HIV-infected gay men. In addition to other well-known factors, behavior of this kind was found in this study to be related to poor mental HRQL. A more comprehensive approach to care designed to improve mental quality of life might therefore make for more effective secondary prevention" (p. 597).
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Fall 2006 Newsletter / Volume 8, Issue 1
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