Hepatitis B markers in men seeking human immunodeficiency virus antibody testing in Mexico City.

To determine the seroprevalence and associated risk factors of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in Mexico City Mexico 1377 men who presented for voluntary human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing in 1992 completed a questionnaire and provided a venous blood sample. 26 men (1.9%) were hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) carriers. There was a significant difference in HBsAg prevalence between HIV-negative (0.8%) and HIV-positive men (7.9%). The HBsAg rate also varied according to sexual orientation: 0.3% among exclusively heterosexual men 1.1% among bisexuals and 4.8% among homosexuals. The prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc) was 15.4%. Men who reported only female partners had a 4.6% prevalence compared to a 30.4% prevalence among men with only male partners. This rate increased from 5.6% in those 15-19 years old to 21.8% in men over 35 years old. Logistic regression analysis indicated that HBV infection was positively associated with older age widowed/divorced/single marital status bisexuality/homosexuality HIV infection and herpes simplex virus-2 infection. Overall these findings indicate that in this population HBV is sexually transmitted and closely linked with sexual preference.