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Retention in care low among MSM with HIV
More than 75% of newly diagnosed HIV-positive men who have sex with men were linked to care in 2010, but only about half of those already living with HIV were retained in care, according to researchers from the CDC.
“Increasing access to care and sustained treatment is critical for improving health outcomes and to reduce the potential of transmitting HIV among MSM, who are the majority of persons with HIV infection,” the researchers wrote in MMWR.
The researchers used data from the National HIV Surveillance System (NHSS) and the Medical Monitoring Project (MMP) to identify MSM who were newly diagnosed and MSM living with HIV. They estimated linkage to care and retention in care, as well as ART prescription and viral suppression.
There were 10,093 MSM newly diagnosed with HIV in 2010 within the 19 jurisdictions included, and 7,826 (77.5%) were linked to care within 3 months of diagnosis. The percentage varied by age: 71% of those aged 18 to 24 years vs. 84.1% of those aged 45 to 54 years were linked to care.
There were 174,071 MSM living with HIV within the 19 jurisdictions on Dec. 31, 2010, and 50.9% of these were retained in care. Retention in care increased with age: 45.7% of MSM aged 13 to 24 were retained in care vs. 53.5% of MSM aged at least 55 years.
Data from the MMP indicated that there were 416,730 MSM aged at least 18 years living with HIV in the United States and Puerto Rico. Among those, 206,461 (49.5%) were prescribed ART. The prevalence of ART prescription was lowest among those aged 18 to 24 years (30.5%) and highest among those aged at least 55 years (67.7%). Only 42% of the 416,730 MSM achieved viral suppression, and levels of viral suppression increased with age.
By ethnicity, black MSM had the lowest linkage to care, retention in care, prevalence of ART prescription and level of viral suppression.
“The findings in this report highlight the need for continued expansion of prevention, care and treatment efforts for achieving improvement in linkage to care, retention in care and viral suppression for MSM, particularly MSM younger than 25 years and black/African American MSM,” the researchers wrote.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.