Does Internet Dating Boost Syphilis Rates Among MSM?
According to the Chicago Department of Public Health, men who have sex with men (MSM) in the city are more likely to find sex partners online, which the researchers link to a rise in regional syphilis infections among men with same-sex partners, the Chicago Tribune reports (chicagotribune, 7/14). Syphilis poses a fivefold increase in the risk of HIV transmission.
According to the article, 34 percent of men diagnosed with syphilis at Chicago’s city-run STD clinics last year—most of whom said they have sex with other men—reported that they met their sex partners on the Internet, compared with 33 percent who met their partners at bars or clubs.
The Chicago health department is bolstering efforts to combat syphilis infection by putting more focus on syphilis on its Web site and launching an online educational campaign on STD prevention.
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comments 1 - 3 (of 3 total)
Pamela Cowley, Tacoma, 2008-07-16 17:55:42
We have this magazine in our
lobby. We are the health department. We have the task
of educating the public on STDs. We also provide testing
for HIV and other STDs. Staff use this website as a work-related resource.
Greg H., Modesto, CA, 2008-07-15 13:38:17
Well JP, are you one of those "innocent victims" of HIV/AIDS? You DO have it don't you? You paint with such a broad brush. I'll bet you're one of those that oppose same-sex marriage of anything that promotes stability within the gay community. Let's judge heterosexuals by activities at Mardi Gras and Republican politicians that can't keep their pants up. It's not as though heteros are "disease free." No moral high ground there!
JP, , 2008-07-15 11:23:54
Gays think they have no moral code that they must follow. Disease is a big makeup of their culture because of their behaviour. Things will never change because of it.
"I'm HIV positive and diabetic (as well as have high cholesterol) and some of my meds specify taking them with 'high fat foods' which I have to do twice a day. I've eaten as healthy as possible, but when it comes to high fat foods, I am in a quandary...about what to eat sometimes..."
