Sex parties and use of soft drugs could have contributed to the spread of HIV among three clusters of Hong Kong men who have genetically linked infections, the Centre for Health Protection said.
In its Communicable Diseases Watch e-newsletter released yesterday, the centre revealed findings of its investigations into three clusters of HIV cases involving 86 men who have sex with men (MSMs).
The first cluster, found in 2005, had grown to 66 men by the middle of this year. The second involved 12 men and the third had eight.
To establish 'unique risk factors', the centre interviewed 33 of the men who identified themselves as MSM and were also being treated at its Integrated Treatment Centre in Kowloon.
The centre also interviewed 57 HIV-positive MSMs who were being treated at the centre but were not linked to any cluster.
'Cluster cases were more likely than non-cluster cases to have participated in private group sex activities or so-called sex parties - 36 per cent versus 18 per cent,' the report said. The sex activities occurred mostly in homes or hotel rooms between an undefined number of people.