By Peter Berton
LOS ANGELES – Gay men who hook up via geosocial networking smartphone apps like Grindr, Recon and Scruff are more likely to contract sexually transmitted infections than are those who find sexual liaisons online or in person at clubs and bars. So says a study published in the scholarly journal Sexually Transmitted Infections.
Researchers based their conclusions on 7,184 homosexual patient interviews at the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center for STI screening. The interviews were conducted between August 2011 and January 2013. Thirty-six percent of patients self-reported the located hookups either solely via smartphone apps or via apps combined with other methods. Thirty-four percent met sexual partners solely in person. Thirty percent employed a combination of in-person meetings and online dating.
Based on collected data cross-referenced with patients’ medical conditions, researchers discovered a 35-percent increased risk of chlamydia infection and a 23-percent increased risk of gonorrhea infection among men who hooked up using GSN apps. There was no difference among any of the groups in the risk of contracting HIV.
The researchers also noted GSN apps are most popular among well-educated white and Asian men younger than 40.
The conclusions – drawn from a single base of gay males – have researchers asking a new question: Why would gay men using smartphone apps be at a higher risk of contracting STIs?
“Future studies should focus on the potential relationships between long-term or relatively consistent use of these GSN apps and HIV/syphilis incidence,” the study concluded.
