Gender Differences in HIV Risk Behaviors among Young Adults and Adolescents Entering a Massachusetts Detoxification Center.

We examined gender differences in HIV risk behaviors among young substance abusers 17 through 25 years of age. A voluntary and confidential survey inquiring about HIV-related risk behaviors was administered to clients (N = 200 respondents) on intake at a drug detoxification center in Massachusetts. Female respondents were more likely than males to report having shared their needles (p < 0.01), having had sex in exchange for drugs or money (p < 0.01), sex with an HIV-infected partner (p < 0.01), and sex with an injection-drug user (p < 0.01). They were also more likely to report having been diagnosed with an STD (p < 0.01). Nineteen percent of females (compared to 32% of males) reported always having used condoms for vaginal sex (p = 0.08), and 16% of females compared to 35% of males reported always having used condoms for anal sex (p = 0.06). In our cohort of substance-abusing youth, adolescent and young adult females were more likely than males to report unsafe injection-drug use and sexual practices. The results of this study suggest that programs designed to decrease HIV risk among high-risk substance abusers in detoxification centers should be gender specific.