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Young men who have sex with men (YMSM) have the highest HIV incidence in the U.S. The last 5 years has seen emergence of new methods for HIV prevention and societal shifts in gay rights. It is important to understand if there have been generational shifts in condom use during the developmental transition from adolescents to young adulthood. To disentangle history from development, we require a multiple-cohort, longitudinal design-a methodology never before applied to study YMSM. We followed three cohorts of YMSM recruited in 2007, 2010, and 2015 (N = 1141) from the ages of 17-26 years and modeled their longitudinal change over time in counts of anal sex acts and the ratio of condomless anal sex (CAS) acts to anal sex acts using latent curve growth modeling. We found that there was no significant developmental change in raw counts of anal sex acts, but there was a significant decline in the ratio of anal sex acts that were condomless. We also found significantly different patterns for ratio of CAS acts for the 2015 cohort. The 2015 cohort reported a significantly lower ratio of CAS acts at age 17, but significantly higher growth in ratio of CAS acts over development. The present study suggests that YMSM recruited in 2015 have very different trajectories of CAS compared to previous cohorts, including lower risk in late adolescence, but with the potential for higher risk after the transition into adulthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African-American men who have sex with men and women (MSMW) are among those most heavily impacted by HIV in the United States, and those who have histories of incarceration are at further risk of infection. The Men in Life Environments (MILE) HIV prevention intervention was developed to provide culturally appropriate skills-based education and support for African-American MSMW with recent histories of incarceration. The MILE's conceptual framework was informed by three theories: Theory of Reasoned Action and Planned Behavior, Critical Thinking and Cultural Affirmation Model, and Empowerment Theory. The theory-based framework posits that improving racial pride is crucial in building self-efficacy and intentions that in turn promote health-protective behaviors. Therefore, our study aimed to assess whether baseline associations between racial pride and condom use self-efficacy, intentions, and behaviors among African-American MSMW with histories of incarceration align with our conceptual model. We report data on 212 participants recruited from Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Men's Central Jail and the local community. Using structural equation modeling, we tested two separate models: one with female sexual partners and one with male sexual partners, while stratifying by participant's HIV status. Only among HIV-negative participants was greater racial pride associated with less condomless intercourse with men. In this group, greater self-efficacy and intentions-but not racial pride-predicted less condomless intercourse with women. Our findings suggest that racial pride is an important factor to address in HIV prevention interventions for post-incarcerated African-American MSMW. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An emerging HIV epidemic can be seen among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Vietnam. There are currently no evidence-based behavioral sexual risk reduction interventions for MSM in this setting. Between October 2012 and June 2013, 100 high-risk MSM from Ho Chi Minh City were enrolled in an open pilot trial to assess feasibility and acceptability of a group-based, manualized sexual risk reduction intervention, and to preliminarily examine changes in primary and secondary outcomes. Participants completed a behavioral assessment battery and HIV testing at baseline, 3, and 6 months post-baseline. Over 80.0 % of the sample was <25 years old and 77.0 % identified as Bong kin ("hidden," masculine-appearing). Feasibility and acceptability of the program was evidenced by 87.0 % retention for the intervention sessions, 78.0 % completion of the 6 month assessment, and positive responses on evaluation forms and qualitative exit interviews. There was a decline in the number of condomless anal sex acts from baseline (6.32) to 3 month (2.06) and 6 month (2.49) follow-up (p < .0001). These data support the need for further testing of this group-based, behavioral HIV prevention intervention to reduce sexual risk behavior among MSM in Vietnam in a randomized controlled efficacy trial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]