Changes in STI and HIV testing and testing need among men who have sex with men during the UK’s COVID-19 pandemic response

OBJECTIVES: We examined the impact of COVID-19-related restrictions on sexual behaviours, STI and HIV testing and testing need among men who have sex with men (MSM) in the UK.

METHODS: We used social media and dating applications to recruit to three cross-sectional surveys (S1–S3) during the UK’s pandemic response (S1: 23 June–14 July 2020; S2: 23 November–12 December 2020; S3: 23 March–14 April 2021).

Surveys included lookback periods of around 3–4 months (P1–P3, respectively).

Eligible participants were UK resident men (cisgender/transgender) and gender-diverse people assigned male at birth (low numbers of trans and gender-diverse participants meant restricting these analyses to cisgender men), aged ≥16 years who reported sex with men (cisgender/transgender) in the last year (S1: N=1950; S2: N=1463; S3: N=1487).

Outcomes were: recent STI/HIV testing and unmet testing need (new male and/or multiple condomless anal sex partners without a recent STI/HIV test).

Crude and adjusted associations with each outcome were assessed using logistic regression.

RESULTS: Participants’ sociodemographic characteristics were similar across surveys.

The proportion reporting a recent STI and/or HIV test increased between P1 and P2 (25.0% to 37.2% (p<0.001) and 29.7% to 39.4% (p<0.001), respectively), then stabilised in P3 (40.5% reporting HIV testing).

Unmet STI testing need increased across P1 and P2 (26.0% to 32.4%; p<0.001), but trends differed between groups, for example, unmet STI testing need was higher in bisexually-identifying (vs gay-identifying) MSM across periods (adjusted OR (aOR): P1=1.64; P2=1.42), but declined in HIV-positive (vs HIV-negative/unknown) MSM (aOR: P1=2.06; P2=0.68).

Unmet HIV testing need increased across P1 and P2 (22.9% to 31.0%; p<0.001) and declined in P3 (25.1%; p=0.001).

During P3, MSM reporting a low life-satisfaction level (vs medium–very high) had greater unmet need (aOR: 1.44), while from P2 onwards HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis users (vs non-users) had lower unmet need (aOR: P2=0.32; P3=0.50).

CONCLUSION: Considerable unmet STI/HIV testing need occurred among MSM during COVID-19-related restrictions, especially in bisexually-identifying men and those reporting low life satisfaction.

Improving access to STI/HIV testing in MSM is essential to prevent inequalities being exacerbated.