A Cross Sectional Examination of HIV, Aging, and Chronic Health Conditions among Gay and Bisexual Men

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between HIV status and the presence of chronic health conditions among gay and bisexual men (gbMSM). Most existing on this topic studies fail to account for behavioral factors—such as smoking and alcohol consumption—or focus on the general population without attention to the unique circumstances of gbMSM. Methods Sexually active gbMSM, aged >16 years, were recruited using respondent-driven sampling (RDS) between February 2012 and February 2015. HIV serology confirmed the HIV status. Chronic health conditions were classified into one of six broader categories (i.e., cardiovascular, cancer, gastrointestinal, respiratory, mental health, and other). Logistic regression models tested whether HIV status was associated with any of the six categories. All these models used an interaction term between HIV status and age, and adjusted for race/ethnicity, annual income, body mass index, daily smoking, and “risky drinking”. Results Overall, 223 HIV-positive gbMSM and 551 HIV-negative gbMSM reported histories of cardiovascular disease (16.1%), cancer (5.1%), gastrointestinal illness (7.2%), respiratory problems (16.1%), mental health conditions (49.2%), and “other” co-/morbidities (13.1%). Compared with older HIV-negative gbMSM, those with HIV were more likely to report cardiovascular (aOR=1.15, 95% CI:1.07, 1.24) and respiratory (aOR = 1.08, 95% CI:1.02, 1.14) disease. There were no differences by HIV status for other co-/morbidities. Conclusion Findings support the need for increased resources focused on aging, HIV, and cardiovascular and respiratory health among gbMSM aging with HIV.