FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH UNPROTECTED ANAL INTERCOURSE IN GAY MENS CASUAL PARTNERSHIPS IN SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

We assessed the factors associated with unprotected anal intercourse i n gay men's casual partnerships, using data from a longitudinal cohort study ongoing since October 1992. Participants were recruited through gay community and a variety of other sources and interviewed for the Sydney Men and Sexual Health study. Of 1,037 interviewees at outset, 8 34 men had casual partners during the six months prior to interview; 6 09 had any anal intercourse with a casual partner. Of 172 HIV-positive men, 58 (33.7%) engaged in unprotected anal intercourse with casual p artners. Of 662 non-positive men, 111 (16.8%) engaged in unprotected a nal intercourse with casual partners. Logistic regression analysis rev ealed that gay men's Engagement in unprotected anal intercourse with c asual partners (compared with engagement in safe sex-either no anal in tercourse or protected anal intercourse) was predicted by positive HIV status, occupational differences (being out of the workforce or in wh ite collar positions rather than in professional or managerial positio ns), engagement in a wider range of anal practices, believing withdraw al to be safe and less favourable attitudes towards condoms. Additiona l logistic regressions which, initially, excluded positive men who onl y engaged in unprotected anal intercourse with positive casual partner s (n=26) and then excluded men who did not engage in anal intercourse (n=225) yielded quite similar sets of predictors of unprotected anal i ntercourse with casual partners. However, in both the additional analy ses HIV status was not a significant predictor. It is concluded that g ay men who engage in unprotected anal intercourse with casual partners do not comprise a singular group, although they commonly engage in a diversity of anal practices and they dislike condoms.