[Analysis on new-type drugs use and related factors of high-risk behaviors in online-dating men who have sex with men in Shandong Province].

Objective

To understand the related factors of new-type drugs use and high-risk behaviors in online-dating men who have sex with men (MSM) in Shandong Province, and provide evidence for the development of targeted HIV prevention and intervention strategies.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted from April to July 2023 in eight sentinel surveillance sites across cities in Shandong, recruiting MSM participants. Each city enrolled a sample of 400 individuals. Face-to-face questionnaire surveys were conducted to collect data on socio-demographic characteristics, drug use and sexual behaviors, risk perception, and online-dating practices of the MSM, and χ2 test was used to compare the differences between online-dating MSM who used new-type drugs and those who didn't use. Logistic regression model was used to analyze the related factors of group sex behavior and the lack of HIV detection before sexual behavior in the online-dating MSM. Statistical analysis was performed by using software SPSS 29.0.

Results

A total of 3 235 MSM were surveyed, in whom 2 787 (86.15%) used online-dating platforms to find partners in the past six months. The majority were those who were aged 25-34 years (39.18%, 1 092/2 787), unmarried/divorced/widowed (71.51%, 1 993/2 787), had an education level of college or above (69.36%, 1 933/2 787), and primarily identified as homosexual gays (77.97%, 2 173/2 787), 37.78% (1 053/2 787) believed that they were at low risk for HIV infection and 10.88% (303/2 786) believed that using new-type drugs was less harmful and 57.59% (1 605/2 787) reported new-type drugs use. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that MSM who used new-type drugs had higher risk for group sex in the past six months (aOR=1.31, 95%CI: 1.06-1.63) and sexual activity without pre-HIV testing (aOR=1.57, 95%CI:1.14-2.15) compared with those who didn't use new-type drugs.MSM who believed that the risk of using new-type drugs was general, higher and very high had higher risks for group sex in the past six months (aOR=1.54, 95%CI: 1.09-2.18) and sexual activity withou pre-HIV testing (aOR=2.02, 95%CI:1.34-3.05) compared with those who believed using new-type drugs was less harmful.

Conclusions

The use of new-type drugs was relatively common in the online-dating MSM in Shandong, with widespread high-risk behaviors and poor awareness of risks to health. A gap between knowledge awareness and behavior exists. It is necessary to strengthen the health education and promotion of HIV informed dating practices in MSM.