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from Medical Issues
Rare STD Spreads Among Gays
In Canada, Massachusetts
June 2, 2005 - The rare STD known as Lymphogranuloma
Venereum (LGV) is making a reappearance in North America among gay and bisexual
males in Massachusetts and now in Canada.
LGV is attributed to unsafe sex practices among gays and bisexuals who are
involved in group sex activities in bath houses and through Internet chat rooms.
The STD is also associated with drug use and the lower of inhibitions that
result in unprotected sex.
A patient in Boston told his physician that he probably caught the germ while
visiting Brazil. The disease is endemic to Latin America, Africa, and Southeast
Asia but has also appeared in The Netherlands and other European nations in
recent years.
Since January, six cases of LGV have been discovered in Massachusetts. "We
hadn't seen an LGV case for years," said Dr. Alfred DeMaria, the state's
director of communicable disease control. It's definitely a sign of unsafe sex,
and that's a concern in terms of other sexually transmitted diseases and HIV.
Now, I think we're at the point that people need to pay attention to it."
The Globe and Mail in Canada reported on June 1, 2005 that 22 cases of LGV have
been diagnosed in the past few months--all in gay and bisexual males with
high-risk sex practices.
LGV was virtually unknown in industrialized nations until 2003 when cases were
discovered in The Netherlands among sex tourists. It spread from there to
Belgium, France, Germany, Sweden, Britain, and is now in the U.S. and Canada.
According to the Canadian news report, "half of the infected practiced
"barebacking" - anal sex without a condom. "They also engaged in 'booty bumping'
- ingesting the drug crystal meth anally--and in fisting," according to the
newspaper. All had the same strain of LGV that had been found in The
Netherlands.
According to STD experts, LGV increases the chances of contracting and spreading
HIV and hepatitis. It creates sores that make it easier for infections to enter
the bloodstream.
Updated: 8 February 2008
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