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Sunday, July 26, 2009

Alcohol as a Correlate of Unprotected Sexual Behavior Among People Living with HIV/AIDS: Review and Meta-Analysis
AIDS and Behavior Online First July 21, 2009

The present investigation attempted to quantify the relationship between alcohol consumption and unprotected sexual behavior among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). A comprehensive search of the literature was performed to identify key studies on alcohol and sexual risk behavior among PLWHA, and three separate meta-analyses were conducted to examine associations between unprotected sex and (1) any alcohol consumption, (2) problematic drinking, and (3) alcohol use in sexual contexts.

Based on 27 relevant studies, meta-analyses demonstrated that any alcohol consumption (OR = 1.63, CI = 1.39–1.91), problematic drinking (OR = 1.69, CI = 1.45–1.97), and alcohol use in sexual contexts (OR = 1.98, CI = 1.63–2.39) were all found to be significantly associated with unprotected sex among PLWHA.

Taken together, these results suggest that there is a significant link between PLWHA’s use of alcohol and their engagement in high-risk sexual behavior. These findings have implications for the development of interventions to reduce HIV transmission risk behavior in this population.


Request Reprint E-Mail: paul.shuper@uconn.edu

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