Table 1.
Baseline characteristics in HIV-infected and –uninfected gay and bisexual men recruited in Sydney, Australia
| HIV-uninfected cohort (n=1325) (%) |
HIV-infected cohort (n=557) (%) |
|
|---|---|---|
| Age (years), median (IQR) | 35.3 (29.6–42.0) | 40.9 (36.0–46.7) |
| Ethnicity: Anglo-Australian/ Anglo-Celtic | 985 (74.3) | 424 (76.1) |
| Country of birth: Australia | 913 (68.9) | 392 (70.4) |
| Education: Tertiary | 975 (73.6) | 334 (60.0) |
| Employment:Unemployed or Receiving Pension/Disability Pension | 83 (6.3) | 216 (38.8) |
| Income: <500 per week/ <26,000 per year | 266 (20.1) | 267 (47.9) |
| Sexual Identity: | ||
| Gay, queer or homosexual | 1088 (95.2) | 443 (92.1) |
| Bisexual | 42 (3.7) | 17 (3.5) |
| Other | 9 (0.8) | 21 (4.4) |
| Exposed to Hepatitis C | 52 (3.9) | 69 (12.4) |
| Daily Smoker | 420 (31.7) | 292 (52.42) |
| Number of Alcoholic drinks consumed in one sitting (on average) | ||
| 5 to 8 | 242 (18.3) | 68 (12.2) |
| >9 | 62 (4.7) | 31 (5.6) |
| Illicit Drug Use (past 6 months)* | 1061 (80.1) | 481 (86.4) |
| Injected drugs in last 6months | 50 (3.8) | 89 (16.0) |
| Any unprotected anal intercourse (past 6 months) | 832 (62.8) | 141 (25.3) |
| Kessler Score of Psychological Distress: | 19 (1.4) | 335 (60.1) |
| High (20–30) | 19 (1.4) | 335 (60.1) |
| Mild to Moderate (12–19) | 313 (23.6) | 43 (6.1) |
| Low (6–11) | 989 (74.6) | 2 (0.4) |
| Year diagnosed HIV Positive: | ||
| 1980–1996 | 427 (76.7) | |
| 1996–2006 | 118 (21.2) | |
| Last CD4 cell count: | ||
| <350 | 143 (25.7) | |
| 351–500 | 105 (18.9) | |
| Over 500 | 249 (44.7) | |
| Antiretroviral Therapy History: | ||
| never taken | 87 (15.6) | |
| currently taking | 413 (74.2) | |
| past but now stopped | 47 (8.4) |
*
includes amyl nitrate, cannabis, cocaine, meth/amphetamines, MDMA or other MDA, psychedelics, hallucinogens, downers (barbiturates, tranquilisers or sedatives), Rohypnol or ketamine, heroin or other opiates and GHB.
Abbreviations: N, Number; IQR, Interquartile Range; ml, millilitres;