Patterns of Substance Use Among HIV Positive and Negative Aging MSM

描述（由申请人提供）：本研究的目的是检查参与多中心艾滋病队列研究（MACS）的现有HIV阳性和阴性男男性行为者（MSM）队列中物质使用的模式。一个重要的健康问题，很少得到研究关注的是如何在MSM之间的物质使用的模式进行从早期到以后的生活，以及是否不同的物质使用模式与功能下降，增加的健康和社会问题，作为MSM年龄。虽然对异性恋男子的研究发现，随着年龄的增长，吸毒人数下降或减少，但对男男性行为者的现有研究并未观察到吸毒人数在整个生命过程中大幅下降。该提案寻求资金进行混合方法研究，包括1）对现有MACS数据进行二级定量数据分析的创新方法，以及2）对选定的MACS参与者进行定性深入访谈。分析将比较药物使用减少与使用增加或持续高水平的轨迹。这些模式比较将允许识别与减少物质使用和相关的健康和社会问题相关的弹性特征。研究结果将被用作未来R21赠款申请的基础，以开发和评估一种干预模式，以防止艾滋病毒阳性和阴性男男性行为者滥用药物及相关的健康和社会问题。定量研究结果的因素，有助于减少物质的使用随着时间的推移和定性数据的参与者如何管理他们的物质使用随着时间的推移有直接的影响发展的优势为基础的干预。该分析还将特别寻求从定性和定量数据中提出假设，这些数据可以与其他药物使用者的老龄化人群进行测试。关于物质使用模式如何随着MSM年龄的增长而变化或保持稳定以及影响物质使用变化或稳定模式的因素知之甚少。这项研究的结果将允许识别与减少物质使用和相关的健康和社会问题相关的弹性特征，并将被用作未来拨款申请的基础，以开发和评估一种模型干预措施，以防止药物滥用和相关的健康和社会问题，在老年人艾滋病毒阳性和阴性男男性行为者。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal of this research is to examine the patterns of substance use over time among an existing cohort of HIV positive and negative men who have sex with men (MSM) participating in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS). An important health issue that has received little research attention is how the patterns of substance use among MSM are carried from early age into later life and whether distinct patterns of substance use are associated with decreased functioning, increased health and social problems as MSM age. While research among heterosexual men has found a fall-off or decrease in drug use with increased age, existing research among MSM has not observed a substantial decline in drug use across the life course. This proposal seeks funding to conduct a mixed method study that includes 1) an innovative approach to secondary quantitative data analysis of existing MACS data and 2) qualitative in-depth interviews with select MACS participants. The analysis will compare trajectories of declining substance use with increasing or consistently high levels of use. These pattern comparisons will allow for the identification of resiliency characteristics associated with decreased substance use and related health and social problems. Results will be used as the basis of a future R21 grant application to develop and evaluate a model intervention to prevent substance abuse and related health and social problems among both HIV positive and negative MSM. Quantitative findings regarding the factors that contributed to decreased substance use over time and qualitative data regarding how the participants manage their substance use over time have direct implications for development of a strengths-based intervention. The analysis will also specifically seek to develop hypotheses from the qualitative and quantitative data that can be tested with other aging populations of substance users. Little is known regarding how substance use patterns change or stay stable as MSM age and the factors influencing patterns of change or stability in substance use across the life course. The results of this research will allow for the identification of resiliency characteristics associated with decreased substance use and related health and social problems and will be used as the basis for a future grant application to develop and evaluate a model intervention to prevent substance abuse and related health and social problems among both older HIV positive and negative MSM.