[HIV/AIDS diagnosis in heterosexual men: still a surprise after more than 30 years of the epidemic].

Men are the main group affected by HIV infection in Brazil, with an upward trend in the last 10 years. According to official data, heterosexual men represent 49% of cases, followed by homosexuals with 38% and bisexuals with 9.1%. Heterosexual men have been subsumed in the category "overall population" and have failed to receive specific attention in preventive policies or activities. The article proposes to analyze the circumstances and strategies by which heterosexual men learn of their HIV diagnosis. The study thus seeks to understand the paths and social actors involved in their HIV/AIDS diagnosis. The data are from a qualitative study interviewing 36 men living with HIV/AIDS that did not self-identify as homosexuals and/or bisexuals. The men were contacted in three specialized AIDS services in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. The results indicate that men consider themselves immune to HIV, and that the diagnosis is an unexpected event. Women (affective-sexual partners and/or former partners) are fundamental components in the men's diagnosis, since they reveal the presence of HIV through either prenatal care or their own illness. An important share of these men discover that they are HIV-positive through some illness such as tuberculosis or after several visits to health services. Spontaneous search for HIV testing only occurs through situations and signs associated with possible infection. Heterosexual men have few opportunities for HIV diagnosis, and beyond gender issues, they are subject to programmatic vulnerability.