Mental Health Symptoms Associated with Sexualized Drug Use (Chemsex) among Men Who Have Sex with Men: A Systematic Review.

Santiago Moreno-Guillén,Manuel Gámez-Guadix,Daniel Íncera-Fernández

doi:10.3390/ijerph182413299

Abstract

Background: Sexualized drug use (SDU), also known as chemsex, refers to the use of psychoactive substances for sexual purposes among men who have sex with men (MSM), which has been associated with mental health symptoms. The objective of this review is to systematically review the available evidence on mental health outcomes in MSM who use sexualized drugs. Methods: To prepare this systematic review, search strategies were developed and applied to the Web of Science, Science Direct, PubMed, and Scopus databases. A total of 117 articles were found, of which 12 were selected for the final review. Results: Those MSM who practiced SDU were more likely to experience from depression, anxiety, or a substance dependence, although these results were not found in all the studies analyzed. Among those who practiced the administration of intravenous drugs (referred to as slamsex), the mental health symptoms were more severe. Conclusions: This systematic review contributes to a fuller understanding of the mental health symptoms present in MSM who consume drugs for sexual purposes. Greater uniformity in data collection instruments is required, as well as the need to conduct a more in-depth assessment of the psychosocial adjustment of people who practice chemsex.

Highlights

Duplicated articles were eliminated (n = 67), and 28 of the remaining 55 articles were selected based on title and abstract
Despite the limited mental health information pertaining to people who use drugs for sexual purposes, the findings in this review indicate that chemsex is associated in nine out of twelve studies with worse mental health, including depression, anxiety, and dependence on drugs or other substances
The relationship between mental health and chemsex continues to be poorly addressed and there is a great heterogeneity in terms of the type of substances analyzed

Summary

Introduction

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. The use of psychoactive substances for sexual purposes among men who have sex with men (MSM), a phenomenon known as chemsex, and its implications on the physical and mental health has received increasing empirical attention [1,2,3]. Chemsex has been associated with goals such as enhancing sexual pleasure, facilitating sexual sessions that last several hours or days, and carrying out sexual fantasies and practices [4,5,6,7]. The chemsex phenomenon is known as “party and play” (abbreviated as “PnP”) [8];

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Discussion

Conclusion