Methamphetamine Use and Its Relation to HIV Risk: Data from Latino Gay Men in San Francisco

Abstract

Latino gay men constitute one of the most vulnerable groups in the nation for the transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), showing some of the highest rates of seroprevalence, seroconversion, and unprotected anal intercourse (Lemp et al., 1994; CDC, 2002). In the largest study of young men who have sex with men (MSM) in the United States, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) researchers reported an HIV prevalence of 14% among Latinos ages 23 to 29, double the HIV prevalence (7%) of their White same-age counterparts (Valleroy et al., 2000). This finding mirrors a much larger national health disparity where gay men of color—particularly African American and Latinos—show disproportionate rates of HIV infection, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) diagnoses, and both morbidity and mortality related to HIV/AIDS (Blair et al., 2002; CDC, 2004). Public health officials in the United States have called for a national effort to understand, address, and eliminate health disparities in the United States; however, at present it is unclear why gay men of color are disproportionately affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic (Malebranche, 2003).