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7th Annual Conference Of The British HIV Association [BHIVA]27 – 29 April 2001, The Hove Centre, Brighton |
[AUTHOR(S):] J Elford1, S Leaity2, H Wells2, R Miller2, MA Johnson2, L Sherr1
1 Department of Primary Care and Population Sciences, Royal Free and University College Medical School, 2 HIV Unit, Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust Hospital, London, UK
BHIVA Conf 2001 Apr 27-29;7:O15
OBJECTIVE: To estimate the incidence of HIV infection among gay men seeking a repeat HIV test.
METHODS: Of 470 gay men (75% response rate) surveyed in this London NHS same-day HIV-testing clinic between September 1997 and July 1998, 337 (72%) had previously tested negative for HIV and were returning for another test (repeat testers). HIV incidence was estimated by dividing the number of newly diagnosed cases of HIV among repeat testers by the person-years (py) of exposure since the last negative test.
RESULTS: Among the 275 repeat testers who provided information on date of last test, 12 tested HIV-positive; the overall HIV incidence was 1.8 per 100 person-years (12/655.2) (95% confidence interval 0.8, 2.9). HIV incidence was higher among men reporting three or more previous HIV tests (n=151) than men with one or two previous tests (n=124) (3.3 vs 1.1 per 100 py, P=0.04). Elevated levels of high-risk sexual behaviour were also reported by gay men who had three or more previous HIV tests (42.2% vs 25.3%, P=0.002).
CONCLUSION: In this London HIV-testing clinic, gay men with a history of three or more previous HIV tests reported an increased incidence of HIV infection. For some gay men, repeatedly receiving a negative HIV test result may produce a disinhibiting effect and reinforce high-risk sexual behaviour.
PRESENTING AUTHOR: J Elford
010427
O15
Copyright © 2001, 2011 - British HIV Association (BHIVA) Reproduction of this abstract (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the BHIVA Organising Secretariat 1 Mountview Court, 310 Friern Barnet Lane, London N20 0LD