HIV risk for gay and bisexual men

Why di risk high pass

To be gay or bisexual no dey make anybody body weak pass for HIV. Two oda tins na im dey cause am.

HIV dey more common among partners. UNAIDS estimate say gay men and oda men wey dey sleep wit men get about 23 times more chance to get HIV pass di general population. So male partner wey you no know im status get more chance to get HIV pass any random person for public.

Anal sex get di most risk for each act. CDC say to be di bottom dey make am more likely for you to get HIV pass to be di top. Wit partner wey get HIV and e no dey take treatment, di estimate for one act na:

• To be bottom (receptive anal sex, di person wey dem enter): 1.4% (around 1 out of 72)
• To be top (insertive anal sex, di person wey dey enter): 0.11% (around 1 out of 910)
• Oral sex (to use mouth for private part): 0.01% (around 1 out of 10,000)

Wit partner wey you no know im status

Partner wey you no know im status fit no get HIV at all, so di estimate low well-well pass di figures wey dey up. For one act without condom:

• To be bottom, United States: 0.05% (around 1 out of 2,000)
• To be top, United States: 0.004% (around 1 out of 25,000)
• To be bottom, United Kingdom: 0.01% (around 1 out of 9,800)
• To give oral sex, United States: 0.00036% (around 1 out of 280,000)

Di calculator dey use di higher chance by itself anytime di two partners na men. If you be bisexual, put each partner separately: di figures for sex wit women different. See HIV risk from vaginal sex.

PrEP

PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis: HIV medicine wey you dey take before any exposure to protect yourself) na medicine wey pipo wey no get HIV dey take to prevent am. If you take am di way dem prescribe, e dey reduce di risk from anal sex by about 99%. To be bottom wit PrEP wey you dey take well, wit partner wey get HIV, go reach 0.014% (around 1 out of 7,200).

Three main options dey: daily tablets, event-driven tablets wey you dey take around sex (option for some men wey dey sleep wit men), and long-acting injections. Clinic fit help you choose. See PrEP and PEP and HIV risk wen you dey take PrEP.

Condoms, U=U and circumcision

• Condoms dey reduce risk by about 80% for real life use. To be bottom wit condom and partner wey get HIV: 0.28% (around 1 out of 360).
• U=U. Partner wey get HIV and im viral load (how much HIV dey di blood) dey undetectable (di HIV for blood don low reach where test no fit see am) all di time on treatment no dey pass HIV through sex. See U=U.
• Circumcision dey reduce men risk for vaginal sex, but one Cochrane review find say di evidence for men wey dey sleep wit men no clear.

How often to do test

CDC recommend make everybody wey dey age 13 to 64 test for HIV at least once, and make men wey dey sleep wit men test at least once every year. E add say gay and bisexual men wey dey do sex fit benefit if dem test every 3 to 6 months. You fit find free test for United States for gettested.cdc.gov (for pipo for US), and our HIV testing guide explain di options, including self-test for house.

Regular STI check matter too. Oda STIs (sexually transmitted infection, wey be infection wey dey pass through sex) dey make HIV pass easy, and di calculator dey multiply di estimate by 2 if any of una get one.

Wetin to do now

1. Recent exposure (wen HIV fit don enter your body): go for PEP, wey you go take every day for 28 days. Ask about to enter PrEP wen di course end.
2. No recent exposure: do test now, and make am routine every 3 to 6 months if you dey do sex.
3. You wan start PrEP: you go need HIV test first and regular tests as you dey take am.
4. Tok wit your partners about status, test and treatment. Partner wey im viral load dey undetectable all di time no fit pass HIV through sex.