Heterosexual anal intercourse (HAI) is not an uncommon behavior and it confers a higher risk of HIV transmission than vaginal intercourse. We examined data from heterosexuals recruited in 20 US cities for the 2013 National HIV Behavioral Surveillance system. We assessed correlates of reporting HAI in the previous year. Then, among people reporting HAI in the past year, we assessed what event-level factors are associated with having HAI at last sex. Thirty percent of women and 35% of men reported HAI in the past year. Among people who had HAI in the past year, those who had HAI at last sex were more likely to have a partner who was HIV-positive or of unknown status or to have exchanged money or drugs for sex at last sex. Information that highlights the risk of HIV transmission associated with HAI would complement existing HIV prevention messages focused on heterosexuals in the U.S.
Little research has been conducted to investigate multiple levels of HIV risk—individual risk factors, sex partner characteristics, and socioeconomic factors—among African American women, who, in 2010, comprised 64 % of the estimated 9,500 new infections in women. Respondent-driven sampling was used to recruit and interview women in 20 cities with high AIDS prevalence in the United States through the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System. We assessed individual risk factors, sex partner characteristics, and socioeconomic characteristics associated with being HIV-positive but unaware of the infection among African American women. Among 3,868 women with no previous diagnosis of HIV, 68 % had high school education or more and 84 % lived at or below the poverty line. In multivariable analysis, women who were 35 years or older, homeless, received Medicaid, whose last sex partner ever used crack cocaine or was an exchange sex partner were more likely to be HIV-positive-unaware. Developing and implementing strategies that address socioeconomic factors, such as homelessness and living in poverty, as well as individual risk factors, can help to maximize the effectiveness of the public health response to the HIV epidemic.
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