Sexual Health of Rural and Urban Young Male Couples in the United States: Differences in HIV Testing, Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Use, and Condom Use.
Young men who have sex with men (YMSM) are disproportionally affected by HIV, and main partnerships account for a large proportion of new HIV infections. HIV prevention is largely focused on urban YMSM, and less is known about sexual health of rural male couples. The present study used data from a randomized controlled trial of a relationship education and HIV prevention program for male couples to test associations of rurality with HIV/STI testing, PrEP use, number of sexual partners, and condomless anal sex (CAS) acts. Participants were 430 YMSM in relationships. Rural YMSM were less likely to have been tested for HIV/STIs, and to have used PrEP, compared to urban YMSM. Although higher rurality was associated with fewer CAS acts, CAS was not infrequent among rural YMSM, highlighting the need for increased HIV prevention geared toward young male couples living in rural, less resourced areas.
['Sarno|Elissa L|EL|http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1946-0288', 'Bettin|Emily|E|', 'Jozsa|Kyle|K|', 'Newcomb|Michael E|ME|']
D000328:Adult D000368:Aged D017280:Condoms D015658:HIV Infections D000082922:HIV Testing D018451:Homosexuality, Male D006801:Humans D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D065129:Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis D012424:Rural Population D000074384:Sexual Health D012747:Sexual Partners D014481:United States D014505:Urban Population
Rural HIV YMSM Relationships Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)