A study by the LA Gay and Lesbian Center entitled “Sex on demand: geosocial networking phone apps and risk of sexually transmitted infections among a cross-sectional sample of men who have sex with men in Los Angeles county†found that people who use hookup apps are significantly more likely to contract an STI than those who do not. Published last week in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections, the LA Gay and Lesbian Center released the following in a press release:
According to the authors, smartphone apps were favored by younger, well-educated men under the age of 40 and by men of white or Asian ethnic backgrounds. App users were also more likely to use recreational drugs, including cocaine and Ecstasy.
Their analysis further showed that men who used smartphone apps to meet other men for sex were more likely to have common STI than those who met their partners in clubs and bars. They were 25 percent more likely to be infected with gonorrhea and 37 percent more likely to be infected with chlamydia. However, there was no difference in their likelihood of infection with either HIV or syphilis.
The authors suggest that smartphone apps make it easier to meet potential partners more quickly than online or traditional methods; thereby, boosting the chances of anonymous and riskier encounters, and of contracting STI. Additionally, they point out their findings may not be applicable to gay/bisexual men in other areas or to those not attending a dedicated sexual health clinic.
“Technological advances which improve the efficiency of meeting anonymous sexual partners may have the unintended effect of creating networks of individuals where users may be more likely to have sexually transmissible infections than other, relatively less efficient social networking methods,” they write. “Technology is redefining sex on demand; prevention programs must learn how to effectively exploit the same technology, and keep pace with changing contemporary risk factors for STI and HIV transmission.”
The full article can be read here.
