The prevalence of HIV/AIDS infection among local gay and bisexual men has almost tripled from 1.5 percent three years ago to 4.4 percent, said a survey released yesterday, World AIDS Day.

The incidence of syphilis among gay and bisexual men had risen to 10.3 percent, according to the survey. The latest figures from Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention put the incidence of syphilis in gay and bisexual men even higher, at around 13 percent.

The survey information was collected from 203 gay and bisexual men in Shanghai. All those interviewed underwent blood tests for HIV and syphilis. The hospital has started to give any who tested positive free syphilis treatment. Treatment for HIV/AIDS is also free.

Tests showed that more than 4.4 percent of the survey group were infected with the HIV virus, much higher than the 0.05 percent national average for gay and straight men and women. However, the relatively small size of the sample group and the difficulty of finding gay and bisexual men willing to talk to authorities in China could have led to a distortion in the figures.

The survey found that 88 men, or 43.3 percent of the correspondents, also have sex with women and their condom-use rate was low while having sex with regular male partners.

Education factor

The infection rate of HIV/AIDS and syphilis was closely related to educational background and the number of sexual partners each man had, the survey found.

More education and campaigns targeting gay and bisexual men were needed, said those who conducted the survey, from Ruijin Hospital and Luwan District Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Due to the high prevalence of HIV/AIDS among gay and bisexual men in Shanghai, intensive education about the prevention of sexual transmitted diseases are urgently needed," said Dr Chen Lei from Ruijin Hospital, one of the chief researchers involved in the survey.

(Shanghai Daily December 2, 2008)