over 50’s risky sex

Michael Carter for Aidsmap (November 27, 2008)

Older HIV-positive gay men as likely to have risky sex as younger gay men with HIV

A significant number of people living with HIV in London are aged over 50, researchers report in the December edition of Sexually Transmitted Infections. Another finding of the study was that the proportion of gay men aged 50-plus reporting unprotected sex with men who were HIV-negative or whose HIV status they did not know, was similar to that reported by younger gay men.

The number of people living with HIV in the UK has doubled since effective HIV treatment became available. There are two reasons for this: patients are living significantly longer thanks to antiretroviral therapy, and there are new HIV diagnoses.

A “graying” of the HIV epidemic in the US has been reported, but there has hitherto been little research on the ageing of the HIV-positive population in the UK.

Researchers therefore designed a study looking at the age of diagnosis, sexual behavior and some social characteristics of people living with HIV who were aged over 50, focusing their attention on gay men.

There were no significant differences in sexual behavior between older and younger gay men. The researchers found gay men in their 50s just as likely as gay men in other age groups to report unprotected anal sex with a gay men who was HIV-negative or of unknown HIV status.

Furthermore, gay men in their 50s reported that they had had unprotected anal sex with an average of four men who were HIV-negative or of unknown HIV status in the previous three months. This was no different to the number reported by gay men in other age groups.

The investigators think that these findings show the importance of targeting HIV prevention messages at older as well as younger HIV-positive gay men.

Older gay men were, however, less likely to report “serosorting” (the selection of other HIV-positive partners) than gay men aged under 50.


“Our study highlights the diversity of older people living with HIV”, write the investigators, “the over 50s with HIV do not simply comprise an ageing cohort of people diagnosed in their 30s and 40s, but also people diagnosed with HIV over the age of 50 years.”

They conclude, “this diversity will present a continuing challenge for HIV treatment and prevention among older people living with HIV in the UK. Positive prevention programs should target HIV-positive gay men of all ages because older gay men with HIV were just as likely to report high-risk sexual behavior as younger gay men.”

Reference

Over fifty and living with HIV in London.
Elford, J. et al.
Sexually Transmitted Infections 84: 468-72, 2008.
Link to STI abstract

Link to Aidsmap article