{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,24]],"date-time":"2026-01-24T05:30:06Z","timestamp":1769232606159,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":28,"publisher":"BMJ","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,18]],"date-time":"2022-07-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1658102400000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["bmj.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Sex Transm Infect"],"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Objectives<\/jats:title><jats:p>We examined the impact of COVID-19-related restrictions on sexual behaviours, STI and HIV testing and testing need among men who have sex with men (MSM) in the UK.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>We used social media and dating applications to recruit to three cross-sectional surveys (S1\u2013S3) during the UK\u2019s pandemic response (S1: 23 June\u201314 July 2020; S2: 23 November\u201312 December 2020; S3: 23 March\u201314 April 2021). Surveys included lookback periods of around 3\u20134 months (P1\u2013P3, respectively). Eligible participants were UK resident men (cisgender\/transgender) and gender-diverse people assigned male at birth (low numbers of trans and gender-diverse participants meant restricting these analyses to cisgender men), aged \u226516 years who reported sex with men (cisgender\/transgender) in the last year (S1: N=1950; S2: N=1463; S3: N=1487). Outcomes were: recent STI\/HIV testing and unmet testing need (new male and\/or multiple condomless anal sex partners without a recent STI\/HIV test). Crude and adjusted associations with each outcome were assessed using logistic regression.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results<\/jats:title><jats:p>Participants\u2019 sociodemographic characteristics were similar across surveys. The proportion reporting a recent STI and\/or HIV test increased between P1 and P2 (25.0% to 37.2% (p&lt;0.001) and 29.7% to 39.4% (p&lt;0.001), respectively), then stabilised in P3 (40.5% reporting HIV testing). Unmet STI testing need increased across P1 and P2 (26.0% to 32.4%; p&lt;0.001), but trends differed between groups, for example, unmet STI testing need was higher in bisexually-identifying (vs gay-identifying) MSM across periods (adjusted OR (aOR): P1=1.64; P2=1.42), but declined in HIV-positive (vs HIV-negative\/unknown) MSM (aOR: P1=2.06; P2=0.68). Unmet HIV testing need increased across P1 and P2 (22.9% to 31.0%; p&lt;0.001) and declined in P3 (25.1%; p=0.001). During P3, MSM reporting a low life-satisfaction level (vs medium\u2013very high) had greater unmet need (aOR: 1.44), while from P2 onwards HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis users (vs non-users) had lower unmet need (aOR: P2=0.32; P3=0.50).<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title><jats:p>Considerable unmet STI\/HIV testing need occurred among MSM during COVID-19-related restrictions, especially in bisexually-identifying men and those reporting low life satisfaction. Improving access to STI\/HIV testing in MSM is essential to prevent inequalities being exacerbated.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1136\/sextrans-2022-055429","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,22]],"date-time":"2022-07-22T00:30:21Z","timestamp":1658449821000},"page":"sextrans-2022-055429","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":15,"title":["Changes in STI and HIV testing and testing need among men who have sex with men during the UK\u2019s COVID-19 pandemic response"],"prefix":"10.1136","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1334-8658","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jack RG","family":"Brown","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6832-2418","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"David","family":"Reid","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0597-6614","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alison R","family":"Howarth","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2060-7286","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hamish","family":"Mohammed","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9658-7798","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"John","family":"Saunders","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2500-9119","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Caisey V","family":"Pulford","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2090-7702","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gwenda","family":"Hughes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4220-5034","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Catherine H","family":"Mercer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"239","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"2022072117301681000_sextrans-2022-055429v1.1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"095646241774689","DOI":"10.1177\/0956462417746897","article-title":"2016 United Kingdom national guideline on the sexual health care of men who have sex with men","author":"Clutterbuck","year":"2018","journal-title":"Int J STD AIDS"},{"key":"2022072117301681000_sextrans-2022-055429v1.2","unstructured":"Prime Minister\u2019s Office, 10 Downing Street . 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