High HIV incidence epidemic among men who have sex with men in china: results from a multi-site cross-sectional study

Background:Recent upsurge of new HIV infections among men who have sex with men(MSM)is a major concern in China.Paucity of national-level information regarding the burden and predictors of this progressive epidemic of new infections called for a multi-centric,timely and comprehensive investigation.Methods:Mixed methods were used to recruit MSM from seven cities in China between 2012 and 2013.Recent and established HIV infections were estimated by Western Blot and BED HIV-1 capture enzyme immunoassay.Syphilis and herpes simplex virus-2(HSV-2)were also tested.Results:A total of 4496 eligible MSM were recruited.The majority was aged≤35 years(77.5%),migrants(60.3%),never married(69.8%),and played receptive role in anal sex(70.5%).The HIV prevalence was 9.9%,and 41.9%were recently infected,with sensitivity/specificity adjusted HIV incidence of 8.9(95%CI:7.6-10.2)/100 Person-Years.The prevalence of history HSV-2 and syphilis were 12.5%and 8.5%,respectively.Recent HIV infection was associated with having multiple male partners(aOR=1.4,95%CI 1.1-1.9),recreational drug use(aOR=2.2,95%CI 1.6-3.0),anal bleeding(aOR=2.1,95%CI 1.4-3.0),syphilis infection(aOR=2.8,95%CI 1.9-4.3)and history HSV-2 infection(aOR=2.3,95%CI 1.5-3.3).Conclusion:High rate of recent HIV infection is potentially resulting in progressive deterioration of the overall HIV epidemic among MSM in China.Targeted interventions to address high-risk MSM including those having multiple partners,history of recreational drug use and syphilis or HSV-2 infection seemed to be the need of the hour.