Open AccessHuman Papillomavirus Vaccination Among Young Adult Gay and Bisexual Men in the United States
Author(s) -
Paul L. Reiter,
Annie-Laurie McRee,
Mira L. Katz,
Electra D. Paskett
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2014.302095
Subject(s) - vaccination , medicine , odds ratio , worry , confidence interval , human papillomavirus , demography , logistic regression , population , young adult , gerontology , immunology , environmental health , psychiatry , anxiety , sociology
Objectives. We examined human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among gay and bisexual men, a population with high rates of HPV infection and HPV-related disease. Methods. A national sample of gay and bisexual men aged 18 to 26 years (n = 428) completed online surveys in fall 2013. We identified correlates of HPV vaccination using multivariate logistic regression. Results. Overall, 13% of participants had received any doses of the HPV vaccine. About 83% who had received a health care provider recommendation for vaccination were vaccinated, compared with only 5% without a recommendation (P < .001). Vaccination was lower among participants who perceived greater barriers to getting vaccinated (odds ratio [OR] = 0.46; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.27, 0.78). Vaccination was higher among participants with higher levels of worry about getting HPV-related disease (OR = 1.54; 95% CI = 1.05, 2.27) or perceived positive social norms of HPV vaccination (OR = 1.57; 95% CI = 1.02, 2.43). Conclusions. HPV vaccine coverage is low among gay and bisexual men in the United States. Future efforts should focus on increasing provider recommendation for vaccination and should target other modifiable factors.