Author Archives: administrator

Is oral sex safe?

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One of the most often asked questions regarding sex and HIV is “can I get HIV from oral sex without using a condom?”

The short answer is yes. Although a lot of sexual health experts put oral sex into the “safer sex” category, there is a degree of risk. Using condoms for oral sex is your safest bet.  With that said, if you’re not going to use a condom, the following are ways to reduce your risk even more: 

  • Don’t brush or floss your teeth for at least an hour before giving head. You can use a mouthwash, breath mint, or gum instead. This will keep the number of tears and cuts in our mouth to a minimum.
  • Try not to eat abrasive foods (like tortilla chips, French bread, pretzels, etc.) for the same reasons.
  • In general, it’s also a good idea to maintain excellent oral hygiene to prevent the possibility of easy tears/cuts in the mouth. If your gums bleed when you brush, you need to step up your oral hygiene—talk to your dentist about what to do.  
  • Avoid getting semen in your mouth; semen contains active HIV. If you do get semen in your mouth, as the saying goes, “Swallow or spit, just don’t let it sit.” The longer semen in your mouth, the more potential for HIV to find an entry point into your body.
  • Avoid deep throating since this can cause abrasions in the throat. Pre-cum/semen can come into contact with these abrasions, creating an effective entry point for HIV infection.

For more information about oral sex and HIV, you can check out the following links: http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/resources/factsheets/pdf/oralsex.pdf and http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/SafeSex/Q9080.html

 

National suicide strategy includes LGBT populations

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From the Washington Blade online:

A new strategy unveiled Monday aimed at reducing the suicide rate in the United States includes a section on the rate of suicide for LGBT people — saying they may be particularly at risk because of “minority stress” and “institutional discrimination” resulting from anti-gay laws on the books.

The 2012 National Strategy for Suicide Prevention, made public on World Suicide Prevention Day, was published by the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention and U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin. Secretary of Health & Human Services Kathleen Sebelius and former Defense Secretary of Robert Gates launched the alliance in late 2010 in part to address the suicide rate among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans returning home.

The strategy details multiple goals for reducing suicide, such as integrating suicide prevention into health care policies and changing the way the public talks about suicide and suicide prevention. In addition to veterans, the study identifies particular groups that may face a higher suicide rate, such as individuals with mental and substance abuse disorders, individuals in justice or child welfare settings and LGBT people.

Andrew Lane, a gay member of the Action Alliance’s executive committee, said the strategy lays the groundwork to reduce the suicide rate among LGBT people.

“The 2012 NSSP represents a significant step forward in our ongoing efforts to highlight the unique health needs of the LGBT community and ensure government responsiveness,” said Lane, who’s also executive director of the Johnson Family Foundation.

The strategy attributes the prevalence of suicide in the LGBT community to “minority stress” stemming from cultural stigma as well as “institutional discrimination” that comes from laws that deny benefits and protections for LGBT people that are provided to others.

Read the full article on the Washington Blade Website.

“That’s so gay” can have real, negative consequences

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From thinkprogress.org:

A new study from the University of Michigan has found that simply overhearing the expression “that’s so gay” used to describe something in a disparaging way can have negative consequences for gay, lesbian, or bisexual students. Practically every college student interviewed for the study had heard “that’s so gay” at least once in the past year, with more than half hearing it with much more frequency. Those who heard it more frequently were more likely to report feelings of isolation, as well as negative health symptoms, such as headaches, poor appetite, or eating problems.

Study author Michael Woodford, assistant professor of social work at U-M, describes the results: “Given the nature of gay-lesbian-bisexual stigma, sexual minority students could already perceive themselves to be excluded on campus and earing “that’s so gay” may elevate such perceptions. “That’s so gay” conveys that there is something wrong with being gay.  And, hearing such messages about one’s self can cause stress, which can manifest in headaches and other health concerns.”

Read the full post on thinkprogress.org.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves a new once-a-day combination pill to treat HIV

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From the FDA:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Stribild (elvitegravir, cobicistat, emtricitabine, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate), a new once-a-day combination pill to treat HIV-1 infection in adults who have never been treated for HIV infection.

Stribild contains two previously approved HIV drugs plus two new drugs, elvitegravir and cobicistat. Elvitegravir is an HIV integrase strand transfer inhibitor, a drug that interferes with one of the enzymes that HIV needs to multiply. Cobicistat, a pharmacokinetic enhancer, inhibits an enzyme that metabolizes certain HIV drugs and is used to prolong the effect of elvitegravir. The combination of emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, approved in 2004 and marketed as Truvada, blocks the action of another enzyme that HIV needs to replicate in a person’s body. Together, these drugs provide a complete treatment regimen for HIV infection.

“Through continued research and drug development, treatment for those infected with HIV has evolved from multi-pill regimens to single-pill regimens,” said Edward Cox, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Office of Antimicrobial Products in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “New combination HIV drugs like Stribild help simplify treatment regimens.”

Read the full FDA press release on the FDA Website.

CDC Creates Sex Survey for Gay and Bi Men

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From the The Advocate:

The Centers for Disease Control has launched the largest survey ever conducted by a federal agency for gay and bisexual men in the United States at SexistheQuestion.org. According to HRC, Sex in the Question will also make a monetary donation to the It Gets Better Project for every survey complete.

The survey is aimed at understanding men’s sexual behaviors and health and finding ways to deal with STD and HIV transmission among men who have sex with men.

A quick online survey, Sex Is the Question is also one of the first surveys to provide immediate feedback based on participants answers so you know how you compare to other men who are taking the survey as well.

To take the survey and send money to It Gets Better, click here.

International health panel says treat all HIV infections

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From “Gay Today“…

An international health panel has recommended for the first time that all HIV patients be treated with antiretroviral drugs, even when the virus’s impact on their immune system is shown to be small.

The nonprofit International Antiviral Society-USA cited new evidence that untreated infection with the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS can also lead to a range of other conditions, including cardiovascular disease and kidney disease. In addition, data have shown that suppressing HIV reduces the risk of an infected person passing the virus to another person.

“We are no longer only focused on traditional AIDS-defining infections. We know that HIV is doing damage to the body all the time when it is not controlled,” said Dr. Melanie Thompson, principal investigator of the AIDS Research Consortium of Atlanta and a member of the Antiviral Society panel.

The recommendations are global, but mainly aimed at “resource-rich” countries who can cover the cost of the medications, she said. The guidelines were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association at the start of the International AIDS Society’s 2012 conference, which runs from Sunday through Friday in Washington, DC.

Go to Gay Today for the full article.

Rutgers is looking for a few good men

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From G PHILLY online:

In May, President Obama came out in support of gay marriage. And while it’s a big step for the LGBT community, not everyone is quite so supportive (remember that recent legislation in North Carolina?). That’s why the Healthy Development Lab at Rutgers University in Camden has been studying diversity in adult relationships for nearly a decade now.

For the most recent study, the university is seeking gay male couples to better understand how men’s same-sex partners influence their health, especially their eating behaviors.

Very little research, says Rutgers, has examined men and their same-sex partners in relation to health, nutrition and well being. The study lasts two hours – and couples get paid $100.

“Participants in our research routinely say that the experience is fun, interesting and provides an opportunity to learn more about their partners,” says Hanna Garrity, a spokesperson for the study.

If you or a gay male couple you know are interested, click here to apply for the study. Or email the lab directly: RUHealthyLab@gmail.com

FDA gives green light to OraQuick in-home HIV test

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Health regulators on Tuesday said they approved OraSure Technologies Inc’s in-home test for HIV, making it the first over-the-counter, self-administered test for the virus that causes AIDS.

The Food and Drug Administration gave its green light to the OraQuick In-Home HIV Test, which within 20 to 40 minutes provides results from an oral fluid sample taken by swabbing the upper and lower gums inside the mouth.

The company said the test — already approved for use by trained technicians — will be available starting in October at more than 30,000 retailers and online. The price will be set closer to the launch date, it said.

The FDA cautioned that a positive result does not mean an individual is definitely infected with HIV, but rather that additional testing should be done in a medical setting to confirm the result.

About 1.2 million people in the United States are living with HIV infection, but one in five are not aware of it, according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 50,000 new people are infected with HIV each year, often from people who may not know they have the virus, the FDA said.

“Knowing your status is an important factor in the effort to prevent the spread of HIV,” said Dr. Karen Midthun, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. “The availability of a home-use HIV test kit provides another option for individuals to get tested so that they can seek medical care, if appropriate.”

An FDA advisory committee of outside experts voted unanimously in favor of the test in May, saying its ability to prevent new HIV infections and link people to medical care and social services outweighed the risk of false results.

Clinical trials for the test showed it was accurate 92 percent of the time in diagnosing people who had HIV — meaning one out of every 12 test results would be a false negative.

False negatives are of particular concern because they could lead HIV-positive individuals to take fewer precautions, raising the danger that they will engage in unprotected sex.

The test accurately gave a negative result for those without HIV in 99.98 percent of cases, meaning there would be only one false positive result out of every 5,000 tests.

“We set out with a clear purpose – to dramatically impact the number of people getting tested for HIV nationwide,” Douglas Michels, OraSure’s chief executive, said in a statement.

“Today’s FDA approval of OraQuick brings us much closer to accomplishing that goal.”

(Reuters) – (By Bill Berkrot and Anna Yukhananov; Reporting by Bill Berkrot in New York and Anna Yukhananov in Washington; Editing by Maureen Bavdek, Jim Marshall and John Wallace)

CDC trying free HIV tests in drugstores

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ATLANTA (AP) _ Getting an AIDS test at the drugstore could become as  common as a flu shot or blood pressure check, if a new pilot program takes off.

The $1.2 million program will offer the free rapid HIV tests at pharmacies and in-store clinics in 24 cities and rural communities, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday.

“We believe we can reach more people by making testing more accessible and reduce the stigma associated with HIV,” Dr. Kevin Fenton, who oversees the agency’s HIV prevention programs, said in a statement.

The tests are already available at seven places, including Washington, D.C., Oakland, California, and an Indian health service clinic in Montana. The CDC will soon pick 17 more locations.

The HIV test is a swab inside the mouth; it takes about 20 minutes for a preliminary result. The test maker says it’s correct 99  percent of the time. If the test is positive for the AIDS virus, pharmacy employees will refer customers to a local health department or other health care providers for a lab blood test to confirm the results, counseling and treatment. The workers are expected to deliver the news face-to-face and give customers privacy, the CDC said.

An estimated 1.1 million Americans are infected with HIV, but as many as 20 percent of them don’t know they carry the virus, according to the CDC. It can take a decade or more for an infection to cause symptoms and illness.

Since 2006, the CDC has recommended that all Americans ages 13 to 64  get tested at least once, not just those considered at highest risk: gay men and intravenous drug users. But fewer than half of adults   younger than 65 have been tested, according to the agency’s most recent statistics.

It’s important to know about infection not only for treating the condition but also to take steps to prevent spreading it to others. An HIV diagnosis used to be a death sentence, but medications now allow those infected to live longer and healthier lives.

On special occasions, health organizations have sent workers to some  drugstores to offer HIV testing. This week, Walgreens, the  nation’s  largest chain of pharmacies, is teaming with health departments and AIDS groups to offer free tests in 20 cities.

But in that program, health professionals conduct the tests and deliver the news. The CDC program aims to train pharmacy staff to test and deliver the results themselves.

“I’m excited. It’s such a new and novel thing for us,” said  Sarah  Freedman, who manages a Walgreens in Washington, D.C., that is participating in the pilot program.

At her pharmacy, prominent signs advertise the test, which is then done in a private room. The pharmacy has also taken steps to let a   customer discreetly request the test, putting out stacks of special test request cards (they look like business cards) at George Washington University and nearby businesses. Anyone seeking a test can simply hand the card to the clerk, she said.

Only three or four customers have gone through with a test in the first few weeks.

“We get a lot of questions,” she said. “Usually they get the information and they go and sit on it and think about it.”

The drugstores are expected to keep the test confidential.  Pharmacy workers are to refer customers with positive tests to counseling and other services.

When the project ends next summer, CDC officials will analyze what worked well and what didn’t, said Paul Weidle, the epidemiologist who is heading up the project.

The program carries both promise and potential pitfalls, said Julie Davids, a longtime advocate who now works for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.

More testing is a plus, she said. And even if they don’t get a free test, signs in the drugstores may prompt people to get tested at a doctor’s office or clinic where they feel more comfortable, said Davids.

But Davids said pharmacies more used to handling cholesterol screenings might have difficulty responding to patients who learn in a drugstore they’re HIV-positive.

“A person may freeze up and fall apart later,” or get emotional on the spot and even talk about suicide, she said.

In addition to Freedman’s store, a second Walgreens in Washington is  offering the test, as well as branches in Chicago and Lithonia, Georgia. The other sites are East Pines Pharmacy in Riverdale, Maryland, Mike’s Pharmacy in Oakland, California and a federal Indian Health Service location in Billings, Montana.

Each location will get enough tests to check 200 to 300 people.  Made  by OraSure Technologies Inc., the $17.50 test is the only government-approved rapid HIV test that uses saliva. Other rapid tests on the market analyze a finger-prick blood sample. The tests are used   routinely in doctor’s offices, hospitals and clinics.

The OraSure swab test’s stick-like testing device is used to wipe the inside of the mouth, then it is put in a solution, said company spokesman Ron Ticho. If two lines appear, that indicates a positive test.

The company is seeking government approval to sell it over-the-counter for home testing. A decision is expected later this year.

The test is sold in about 40 countries, including Mexico, Italy, South Korea and South Africa. Ticho said he is not aware of another country where pharmacies routinely offer the testing.

June 27th is National HIV Testing Day

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National HIV Testing Day (NHTD) is an annual campaign coordinated by the National Association of People with AIDS to encourage people of all ages to “Take the Test, Take Control.”

Too many people don’t know they have HIV. In the United States, nearly 1.2 million people are living with HIV, and almost one in five don’t know they are infected. Getting tested is the first step to finding out if you have HIV. If you have HIV, getting medical care and taking medicines regularly helps you live a longer, healthier life and also lowers the chances of passing HIV on to others.

HIV medical providers need to talk about sex with their patients

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From the the AIDS Education and Training Center (AETC) Website:

Taking responsibility for preventing HIV transmission is an important concern for most people with HIV, as well as for their health care providers. Multiple studies have shown that one third to three fourths of HIV medical providers do not ask their patients about sexual behavior or drug use. However, many HIV-infected individuals report that they want to discuss prevention with their health care providers. Each patient visit presents an opportunity to provide effective prevention interventions, even in busy clinical settings.

It is clear that information alone, especially on subjects such as sexual activity and drug use, cannot be expected to change patients’ behavior. However, health care providers can help patients understand the transmission risk of certain types of behavior and help patients establish personal prevention strategies (sometimes based on a harm-reduction approach) for themselves and their partners. Some patients may have difficulty adhering to their safer sex goals. In these cases, referrals to mental health clinicians or other professional resources such as prevention case management may be helpful.

Patient-education needs are variable and must be customized. Providers must assess the individual patient’s current level of knowledge as part of developing a prevention plan. All the information that a patient needs cannot be covered during a single visit. A patient’s prevention strategy should be reinforced and refined at each visit with the clinician. Clinicians also should ask patients questions to determine life changes (e.g., a new relationship, a breakup, or loss of a job) that may affect the patient’s sexual or substance use practices. If the patient can read well, printed material can be given to reinforce education in key areas, but it cannot replace a direct conversation with the clinician.

Find out more on the AETC Website.

May is Hepatitis Awareness Month

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From the CDC Website:

Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C can become chronic, life-long infections which can lead to liver cancer. Millions of Americans are living with chronic viral hepatitis, and many do not know they are infected. CDC’s Division of Viral Hepatitis is leading a  national education initiative called Know More: Hepatitis.  The initiative aims to decrease the burden of  chronic viral hepatitis by increasing awareness about this hidden epidemic and  encouraging people who may be chronically infected to get tested.

Online Hepatitis  Risk Assessment

Know More Hepatitis is being featured in May as part of Hepatitis  Awareness Month.  This year, May 19th  will serve as the first ever Hepatitis Testing Day in the United States. Since chronic  hepatitis often does not cause any symptoms until serious liver damage has been  done, testing for hepatitis is crucial. Find out if you should be tested by taking a 5 minute  online Hepatitis  Risk Assessment.

The  online assessment is designed to determine an individual’s risk for viral  hepatitis and asks questions based upon CDC’s guidelines for testing and  vaccination.  The Hepatitis Risk  Assessment allows individuals to answer questions privately, either in their  home or in a health care setting, and print their recommendations to discuss  with their doctor.

Go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Website for the full story.

“Truvada” moves toward FDA approval for HIV prevention

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From the LA Times:

The Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday that Gilead Sciences’ Truvada appears to be safe and effective for HIV prevention. It concluded that taking the pill daily could spare users “infection with a serious and life-threatening illness that requires lifelong treatment.”

On Thursday, a panel of FDA advisors will vote on whether Truvada should be approved as a preventive treatment for people who are at high risk of contracting the human immunodeficiency virus through sexual intercourse. The FDA is not required to follow the advice of its panels, but usually does.

An estimated 1.2 million Americans have HIV, which attacks the immune system and, unless treated with antiviral drugs, develops into AIDS, a fatal condition in which the body cannot fight off infections. If Truvada is approved, it would be a major breakthrough in the 30-year campaign against the AIDS epidemic. No other drugs have been proven to prevent HIV and a vaccine is believed to be decades away.

Gilead Sciences Inc., based in Foster City, Calif., has marketed Truvada since 2004 as a treatment for people who are infected with the virus. The medication is a combination of two older HIV drugs, Emtriva and Viread. Doctors usually prescribe the medications as part of a drug cocktail that makes it harder for the virus to reproduce. Patients with low viral levels have reduced symptoms and are far less likely to develop AIDS.

Researchers first reported in 2010 that Truvada could prevent people from contracting HIV. A three-year study found that daily doses cut the risk of infection in healthy gay and bisexual men by 44%, when accompanied by condoms and counseling. Another study found that Truvada reduced infection by 75% in heterosexual couples in which one partner was infected with HIV and the other was not.

Read the full article on the LA Times Website.

California to test HIV-prevention pill

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From the Los Angeles Times:

California will test an HIV-prevention pill in an attempt to slow the spread of the disease in the state, researchers announced Tuesday.

The pill, which is already used to treat HIV patients, will be prescribed to 700 gay and bisexual men and transgender women in Los Angeles, San Diego and Long Beach who are high-risk but not infected.

“With this new prevention pill, we have another intervention to put in the arsenal to try and impact this epidemic,” said George Lemp, director of the California HIV/AIDS Research Program with the UC president’s office.

The program awarded $11.8 million in state grants for the prevention pill studies and efforts to get about 3,000 HIV-infected people in Southern California into treatment and keep them there. The grants will go to a group of UC schools, local governments and AIDS organizations.

There are an estimated 140,000 people living with HIV or AIDS in California, including about 30,000 who don’t know they are infected, Lemp said.

The pill, under the brand name of Truvada, is already approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treating HIV but not for prophylactic use. In 2010, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine said that it reduced the risk of contracting HIV by 44% to 73%, depending on how often participants took their medication.

Read the full article on the LA Times website.

Homophobia may reveal denial of own same-sex attraction

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From CBS News:

Do homophobic people actually fear their own unconscious feelings? A new study suggests that people who repress their own sexual attraction to the same sex are more likely to express hostility towards gays.

“In many cases these are people who are at war with themselves and they are turning this internal conflict outward,” study co-author Dr. Richard Ryan, professor of psychology at the University of Rochester, said in a university written statement.

In four separate experiments conducted in the U.S. and in Germany, each involving an average of 160 college students, researchers attempted to measure any differences between what people say about their sexual orientation and how they actually react. Their findings are published in the April issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Read the full article on the CBS News Website.

Richard Ryan, a professor of psychology at the University of Rochester, co-authored of the study, explains…

Real Talk About AIDS in Gay America

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From the Huffington Post…

By Amber Hall, Executive Producer for SiriusXM OutQ

There are many reasons that AIDS isn’t on the front pages or in the forefront of our minds every day. As a community, we’re well aware of the medical advances and treatment options. We can calculate our risk factors. We know how to prevent transmission, and the importance of safe sex, or at least we think we do.

Bottom line: we don’t see our friends and lovers dying on a daily basis, and that means the immediacy of action and protection for many is less important while the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS remains high, a dangerous combination. Moreover, there is an entirely new generation of gay and bi men who never experienced that immediacy and for whom HIV was never a big deal.

Perhaps that’s why in a 2011 national public opinion survey conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 8 in 10 Americans say they heard little or nothing about HIV/AIDS in the last year, and public concern about HIV/AIDS has fallen steadily over the years, including among those most heavily affected. And according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 1 in 5 gay and bisexual men (19 percent) in 21 major U.S. cities today are HIV-positive — and nearly half of those who are infected (44 percent) don’t know it. It’s clear that attention needs to be paid, and I’m proud to say that Sirius XM OutQ is strengthening its commitment to covering issues surrounding HIV/AIDS.

On Saturday, March 17, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. EDT, Sirius XM OutQ will air the first installment of SpeakOUT: Real Talk About AIDS in Gay America. The show will be co-hosted by Larry Flick, host of OutQ’s The Morning Jolt, and Dr. Frank Spinelli, M.D., author of The Advocate Guide to Gay Men’s Health and Wellness. The first show will focus on the politics of mating — relationships and HIV — tackling such issues as how to ask a partner to get tested and use condoms, and how to disclose your status to a new partner. It will also explore the effects of Grindr and other popular social networking sites on HIV/AIDS among gay and bi men.

To read the full story, go to Huffington Post Gay Voices.

Gay men at risk for antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea

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A new editorial published in the New England Journal of Medicine brings to light the concern for the rising rate of antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea in the U.S.

What is Gonorrhea and why am I at risk?

Gonorrhea is the second most commonly reported sexually transmitted infection in the United States, with an estimated 600,000 plus cases every year. It disproportionately affects vulnerable populations such as minorities who are marginalized because of race, ethnic group, or sexual orientation. Men who have sex with men, for example, are among the populations hardest hit by the disease.

Gonorrhea is caused by Neisseria gonorrhea, a bacterium that grows and multiplies quickly in moist, warm areas of the body such as the cervix, urinary tract, mouth, or rectum.

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms include burning while urinating, discharge, and pain during intercourse. Symptoms of rectal infection include anal itching, and sometimes painful bowel movements. Symptoms usually appear two to five days after contracting the infection, although in some cases there may be no symptoms at all, particularly with rectal infection.

What is the danger of infection?

Men with untreated gonorrhea may develop Epididymitis (an inflammation of the epididymis-the long, tightly coiled tube that lies behind each testicle and collects sperm), an inflammation of the prostate gland (prostatitis), and a higher risk of getting bladder cancer.

What can I do?

Most forms of Gonorrhea can still be treated effectively with antibiotics. However, the best defense is still a good offense. Condoms are still your best bet to keep from getting infected in the first place. Limiting the number of sexual partners also helps in preventing the spread of sexually transmitted infections. If you think you may be infected, see a doctor for a proper diagnosis and treatment.

For more information:

New England Journal of Medicine
WebMD
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

 

Aging and gay men

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From the Huffington Post Gay Voices: 

Perry N. Halkitis, Ph.D., M.S..Professor of Applied Psychology, Public Health, and Medicine, Steinhardt School, NYU

In 2011 the Institute of Medicine released a historic report documenting the health disparities faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals. This report was call to action for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers to address the burgeoning and often underserved health needs of the LGBT population. In the United States these health disparities coincide with an epidemiological shift: the aging of the American population. Due to increases in life expectancy and aging of the “baby boomer” generation, or those born between 1946 and 1964, approximately one third of the United States population will be 55 years or older by 2014.

While no direct population figures exists, extrapolations drawn from multiple sources suggests that within the population of older Americans, approximately 1.2 to 1.4 million will be older gay men, a figure more pronounced in urban areas such as New York City, where it is estimated that approximately 5 percent of gay men are 50 or older. A significant proportion of these older gay men, both nationally and in New York City, live with HIV, and as a group this generation of gay men, to whom I have previously referred as “the AIDS generation,” have all been directly impacted by the epidemic.

Read the full article on the Huffington Post.