HIV infection among young black men who have sex with men--Jackson, Mississippi, 2006-2008.

In the United States, black men who have sex with men (MSM) account for a disproportionate number of new cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). From 2001 to 2006, the number of HIV/AIDS cases among black MSM aged 13--24 years in 33 states increased 93%. In 2006, more new AIDS cases among black MSM were diagnosed in the South than in all other U.S. census regions combined. In November 2007, the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) reported to CDC an increase in the number of young black MSM who received diagnoses of HIV infection at a sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic in Jackson, Mississippi. MSDH and CDC conducted a survey of 29 young black MSM in the three-county Jackson area who received diagnoses of HIV infection during January 2006--April 2008 to characterize risk behavior and HIV testing behavior. This report summarizes the results of that survey, which found that, during the 12 months before receiving their HIV infection diagnosis, 20 (69%) of the 29 participants had unprotected anal intercourse, but only three (10%) of the 29 thought they were likely or very likely to acquire HIV infection in their lifetimes. Additional investigations are needed to determine whether this sample is illustrative of other groups of black MSM at high risk for HIV infection, especially in the South. Targeted interventions that decrease HIV risk behaviors among black MSM should be developed, implemented, and evaluated to reduce HIV transmission.