Disclosure of HIV status to medical providers: differences by gender, "race," and immune function.

Objective. The authors used data from a larger study to explore differences by gender, self-reported racial identification, and immune function in disclo sure of HIV-positive serostatus to medical providers (centists. family doctors, and emergency room [ER] and obstetrics-gynecology [ob/gyn] providers). Method. The authors analyzed interview responses from a convenience sample of African American and white men and women receiving HIV medical care at urban hospitals and clinics in St. Louis, Missouri. Results. O 179 respondents using at least one of three types of providers 124 (69%) disclosed their HIV status to all applicable types of providers, 39 (22%) disclosed to only one or two types of providers, and 16 (9%) did not disclose to any of these types of providers. Race and CD4 count, but not gender, were independently associated with disclosure to dentists, family doctors, and ER providers n multivariate logistic regression analyses. Conclusions. Differences in disclosure rates, especially among patients who may be asymptomatic, suggest a need for public health ecucation of both medical provicers and patients with HIV.