ABSTRACT
Whether young gay men are at heightened risk of acquiring HIV infection is assessed differently in different countries and studies. Several studies in the USA, for example, highlight young gay men’s particular risk for HIV (Ekstrand and Coates, 1990; Hays, Kegeles and Coates, 1990; Kelly et al., 1990; Lemb et al., 1994). Project SIGMA in Britain, on the other hand, found no difference between young and older gay men’s participation in sexual practices which involve the risk of HIV infection (Davies et al., 1992). In Norway, knowledge on this subject is limited. Epidemiological surveillance, however, gives no indication of young gay men being at higher risk. By the end of 1995, only two men under the age of 20 who had had sex with another man, had been found to be HIV-positive. Among those 45 men diagnosed as having HIV infection in 1995, one man was in the age group 20-25 years and four men were in the age group 25-29 years. The rest were aged over 30 (Nilsen, 1996).
