For Sexual Minority Men, Migration Can Increase HIV Risk

In the United States, reasons for migration among cisgender gay, bisexual, and other sexual minority men (SMM) are associated with behaviors that can increase HIV risk, according to results published in AIDS and Behavior. David Katz, PhD, MPH, and colleagues examined survey data from 2018-2020 to examine patterns in the reasons for migration among SMM (N=1,657). They identified six distinct reasons: family and friends (14%); financial (17%); personal freedom related to being gay (10%); pursuit of opportunities while living openly as SMM (12%); educational purposes (18%); and migration not being their own decision (29%). While HIV testing and PrEP did not vary by class, condomless anal sex and illicit drug use were significantly different (P<0.05). SMM who migrated to pursue opportunities while living openly and whose reasons were not their decision had greater odds of condomless anal sex than SMM who migrated for educational purposes (adjusted OR, 1.72). Reasons for migration were associated with behaviors that can increase HIV risk. “Push and pull factors related to migration should be considered when developing behavioral HIV interventions for immigrant SMM,” Dr. Katz and colleagues wrote.