Circumcision status and HIV infection among Black and Latino men who have sex with men in 3 US cities.

OBJECTIVE To examine characteristics of circumcised and uncircumcised Latino and black men who have sex with men (MSM) in the United States and assess the association between circumcision and HIV infection. METHODS Using respondent-driven sampling, 1154 black MSM and 1091 Latino MSM were recruited from New York City, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. A 45-minute computer-assisted interview and a rapid oral fluid HIV antibody test (OraSure Technologies, Bethlehem, PA) were administered to participants. RESULTS Circumcision prevalence was higher among black MSM than among Latino MSM (74% vs. 33%; P < 0.0001). Circumcised MSM in both racial/ethnic groups were more likely than uncircumcised MSM to be born in the United States or to have a US-born parent. Circumcision status was not associated with prevalent HIV infection among Latino MSM, black MSM, black bisexual men, or black or Latino men who reported being HIV-negative based on their last HIV test. Further, circumcision was not associated with a reduced likelihood of HIV infection among men who had engaged in unprotected insertive and not unprotected receptive anal sex. CONCLUSIONS In these cross-sectional data, there was no evidence that being circumcised was protective against HIV infection among black MSM or Latino MSM.