Resumen
Background: Men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender
women (TW) in Peru bear a disproportionate burden of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In a context of quickly expanding communication technology, increasing numbers of
MSMand TWare using socialmedia applications to seek sex partners. Understanding social media users and their sex partnering practices is needed
to update HIVand STI prevention programming. Methods: In Lima, Peru, 312 MSM and 89 TW from 2 STI clinics underwent HIV and STI testing and participated in a survey of demographics,
behaviors, sexual health, and social media practices. 2, t tests,
and Wilcoxon Mann-Whitney tests were used to compare those with and
without recent social media sex partners. Results: Men who have sex with men with social media sex partners were younger, more educated, and more likely to identify as gay. They were significantly more likely to report greater numbers of sex partners, including anonymous sex partners; sex in higher-risk venues, orgies, and have rectal Neisseria gonorrhoeae or Chlamydia trachomatis infection. Transgender women with social media sex partners were also younger, more likely to
participate in sex work, and have a lower rate of rapid plasma reagin positivity
or history of syphilis. Participants reported using several social media
sites including sexual hook-up applications, websites for gay men, pornographic
websites, and chat sites, but the most common was Facebook.
Conclusions: Prevention strategies targeting Peruvian MSM and TW
who use social media are needed to address higher-risk sexual behavior
and the high burden of STIs.