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Cocaine use and high-risk sexual behavior among STD clinic patients
Background And Objectives:
Crack-smoking sexually transmitted disease (STD) patients are at high-risk for contracting HIV.
Goal Of The Study:
To examine the effects of cocaine use and other correlates on high-risk sexual behavior among STD clinic patients.
Study Design:
This was a cross-sectional study of 1,490 consecutive patients attending three Los Angeles County STD clinics between 1992 and 1994.
Results:
Logistic regression analysis found high-risk sexual activity was associated with being a male and being of younger age. Among women, high-risk sexual behavior was associated with crack cocaine use and a perceived need for help. Among the men in the study, ethnicity (being black) and having an arrest history were associated with high-risk behavior.
Conclusions:
Effective intervention strategies should address cocaine use among STD patients and provide them with referrals to drug treatment.