Risk Perception to HIV/AIDS among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Khon Kaen Province, Thailand

Abstract

Background and Objective: Recently, men who have sex with men (MSM) continue to be at high risk for HIV infection in the population. This study aimed to evaluate risk perception regarding HIV/AIDS among the MSMs.

Materials and methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in 424 MSMs,  aged ≥15 years old and over. A snowball sampling technique was adopted to identify the sample groups, using MSM leaders to distribute the online questionnaire links to the samples.

Result: Overall, it was found that 64.9% of the samples had high risk perception about HIV/AIDS. More than 60% had high risk perception in relation to blood, genital fluids, blood products, and sexual intercourse. The sample had moderate risk perception level towards saliva and other body fluids.  

Conclusions: From the study results, intervention to decrease MSMs risky behavior such as having sex with multiple partners, health education and promoting a positive attitude to prevent HIV/AIDS is recommended among the younger MSMs.