HIV MEDIA CAMPAIGNS AND HIV-1 TESTING TRENDS AT A TENDON GENITOURINARY MEDICINE CLINIC, 1985-1993

Objective: To describe HIV-related media events in the context of firs t-time HIV-1-antibody testing trends at a London genitourinary medicin e clinic. Design: Demographic and behavioural data were collected pros pectively for individuals tested for HIV-1 antibodies between Septembe r 1985 and September 1993, at the genitourinary medicine clinic of St Mary's Hospital, tendon. Results: A total of 19242 individuals were te sted of whom 37% were women. Of the men tested 60% were heterosexual. The women at first time of testing were significantly younger [29.3 ye ars; 95% confidence interval (CI), 28.8-29.7] than the men (32.5 years ; 95% CI, 29.2-35.8); mean ages for both sexes did not change signific antly over time. Overall, 199 women and 1539 men tested HIV-antibody-p ositive. The proportions of women testing positive increased significa ntly over time (chi(2)=21.7, degrees of freedom = 1; P<0.001), whereas the proportion of HIV-positive men remained constant for all sexual o rientation groups. The proportion of heterosexual women testing positi ve (2.8%) was similar to the proportion of HIV-positive heterosexual m en (2.9%). HIV-positive individuals were significantly older for both sexes. Throughout the study period numerous education campaigns were r un using a variety of media complemented by a number of other HIV-rela ted media events. Conclusions: Peak periods of attendance for HIV test ing generally corresponded with increased HIV-related media activity a nd the greatest testing rates were observed when various HIV media eve nts occurred concurrently. The increase in the number of heterosexuals tested suggests that the risk of heterosexual transmission of HIV has been recognized, at least among older individuals. The exact role of HIV-related media events, including celebrities disclosing their HIV-p ositive status, remains to be elucidated. Whether the relative under-r epresentation of younger people is due to a lack of awareness, increas ed use of safer sex practices or reluctance to use the service also re mains to be addressed. Given the increasing number of HIV-positive wom en and the relatively constant rate of HIV-positive tests in the male attendees an urgent need exists to assess the impact and effectiveness of specific HIV media campaigns.