From 2001 through 2006, the number of HIV/AIDS diagnoses among men who have sex with men increased by nearly 9% in 33 states, with particularly high increases among black men and Asian/Pacific Islanders under the age of 25 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC analysis of trends in HIV/AIDS diagnoses among men who have sex with men (MSM) estimated that of the 214,379 people who were diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, 46% occurred among MSM and 4% occurred among MSM who also injected illicit drugs.
Diagnoses during this time period dropped in all transmission categories except for MSM (MMWR 2007;57:681–6).
Of the cases diagnosed among MSM, 64% were in men aged 25–44 years.
There was a 12% increase in diagnoses among all black MSM.
Diagnoses among black MSM aged 13–24 years increased by 93%, a rate that was about twofold greater than the rate of increase among white MSM in the same age group.
Asian/Pacific Islanders aged 13–24 years saw the largest proportionate increase.
In this group, HIV/AIDS diagnoses increased by 256% (an estimated annual increase of almost 31%).
Among MSM in this younger age group, the annual percentage increases in diagnoses were statistically significant in all racial/ethnic populations, with the exception of American Indian and Alaska Natives.
“These findings underscore the need for continued effective testing and risk reduction interventions for MSM,” particularly for those younger than age 25 years, according to the report.
As an example, the report cites an intervention targeted to young black MSM in North Carolina (one of the 33 states), implemented by the CDC, in collaboration with the state health department and local organizations, that successfully reduced their high-risk sexual behavior and the number of sex partners with whom they engaged in high-risk sexual behaviors.
Among the limitations of the report, the patients in the included 33 states are not representative of all HIV-positive people in the United States.
However, the racial and ethnic disparities observed are similar to those observed for AIDS patients in all of the states.