The role of the Black Church in the lives of young Black men who have sex with men

In the USA, the Black Church is among the most important institutions in the Black community, offering numerous spiritual, social and health benefits. Yet, the presence of homonegativity in many Black Churches may mitigate those effects for gay Black youth. This research examines the role of the Church in the lives of gay and bisexual Black youth to understand how they reconcile any tension between their religious and sexual identities. Through interviews with pastors of Black churches (n = 21) and young Black men who have sex with men (n = 30), we explored homonegativity and young men’s experiences within the Black Church. Findings reveal that despite the prevalence of homonegativity within Black churches, religious involvement remains important for young men and many remain involved in non-affirming churches. The importance of the Church for young men stems from their significant involvement as youth and the integration of religion, family and community. Young men may not be able to leave their religious homes as readily as other gay youth given the cultural relevance of the Church. As a result, young men made attempts to conceal their sexuality in church to avoid shame and gossip and find opportunities to balance their sexuality and religiosity.     

‘Sex’ – it’s not only women’s work: a case for refocusing on the functional role that sex plays in work for both women and men

Mention of the term sex work often invokes images of marginalized women at risk for HIV infection. Such images, however, are counterintuitive to the functional role intended by the movement that spawned use of the terms ‘sex work’ and ‘sex worker.’ This article looks at the sexual practices of men in urban China to argue for a return to a functional definition of ‘sex work’, which was originally meant to legitimize the role sex plays in work. The progenitors of this movement intended to use ‘sex work’ as a means to legitimize sex as an income-generating activity for women involved in prostitution. I show that sex can also serve a functional role in the work-related duties of men seeking economic and political success in contemporary urban China. Men in China utilize sex as one way for demonstrating the loyalty necessary to access state-owned and controlled resources in a market economy governed under a Leninist system. Overall, the article demonstrates that reclaiming perception of sex work as a functional rather than behavioral category can expand its use for preventing HIV among the broad subset of people who engage in sex as part of their work.     

Leveraging strong social ties among young men in Dar es Salaam: A pilot intervention of microfinance and peer leadership for HIV and gender-based violence prevention

Gender inequality is at the core of the HIV patterns that are evident in sub-Saharan Africa. Gender-based violence (GBV) and lack of economic opportunity are important structural determinants of HIV risk. We piloted a microfinance and health promotion intervention among social networks of primarily young men in Dar es Salaam. Twenty-two individuals participated in the microfinance component and 30 peer leaders were recruited and trained in the peer health leadership component. We collected and analysed observational data from trainings, monitoring data on loan repayment, and reports of peer conversations to assess the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. Eighteen of the loan recipients (82%) paid back their loans, and of these 15 (83%) received a second, larger loan. Among the loan defaulters, one died, one had chronic health problems, and two disappeared, one of whom was imprisoned for theft. The majority of conversations reported by peer health leaders focused on condoms, sexual partner selection, and HIV testing. Few peer leaders reported conversations about GBV. We demonstrated the feasibility and acceptability of this innovative HIV and GBV prevention intervention. The lessons learned from this pilot have informed the implementation of a cluster-randomised trial of the microfinance and peer health leadership intervention.     

Sexual fantasies of heterosexual and homosexual men

Heterosexual men and homosexual men rated how arousing different sexual fantasies were and how often they had used these fantasies over the previous year. Within each group, sensual and genital same-orientation fantasies were more arousing than either public-sex or dominance-submissive fantasies, which in turn were more arousing than aggressive-sex fantasies. For both heterosexual and homosexual men the extent to which a fantasy was arousing correlated with the person's experience of the activity depicted in the fantasy. The frequency of use of a fantasy correlated positively with its arousal level but not always subtantially so. The results are discussed in the context of the mediating role of fantasy in human sexual arousal.     

庚酸睾酮男性抗生育作用的临床研究

62名健康男性,自愿接受每周1次200mg庚酸睾酮(TE)肌肉注射的避孕方法研究。4人非医学原因中断试验,其余受试者先后实现无精子,自第1次注射TE到全部达到无精子的平均时间为108(58～232)天,在此后的连续12个月共592个妇女月避孕效果观察中,有1例怀孕,临床避孕率为98％(Pearl指数为2.02/100妇女年)。停药后,平均188(135～254)天全部受试者的精子密度恢复到用药前水平或高于20×10~6/ml。在用药期间,除预料的血清睾酮升高、促性腺激素(FSH、LH)受抑制、睾丸体积缩小、体重和血红蛋白轻度增加以及2例出现轻度痤疮外,其余检查,包括血脂代谢、肝肾功能、前列腺大小、血压和性功能等均无显著性改变。结果表明,由TE抑制生精作用的男性激素避孕方法具有效果好,可逆和毒副作用小的优点。     

Coming Out by South Asian Gay Men in the United Kingdom

The process of coming out among Western gay men and women is well described. The present study is the first to explore the experiences of coming out among gay men of South Asian origin in the U.K. South Asian is defined here as originating from the Indian subcontinent. Members of a homophile organization were given a questionnaire designed to assess the experiences of coming out to family and friends and the degree of compartmentalization in their lives. Information obtained from 52 questionnaires was supplemented by detailed interviews with 9 respondents. Families and religion played important roles in the process of coming out. Sisters were most likely to be told first. Some degree of dissonance between cultural and sexual identity was noted. In addition, each step taken in revealing one's sexual orientation to friends, family, and colleagues was dictated by the strength of the relationships and the desire for intimacy. Further areas of research are highlighted.     

Risk of gallstones following gastrectomy in Japanese men

The risk of gallstones developing after gastrectomy in middle-aged Japanese men was investigated in a study of 2,738 men aged between 48 and 56 years who underwent both gallbladder ultrasonography (US) and a barium study of the upper digestive tract. It was revealed that 61 men had gallstones, 37 had had their gallbladder removed previously, and 55 had a history of gastrectomy. The prevalence of gallstones was 3.5 times higher in the men who had previously undergone gastrectomy (7.7%) than in those who had not (2.2%) (P=0.03). Moreover, gallstones tended to be more prevalent in those who had undergone Billroth II gastrectomy (12.5%) compared with those who had undergone Billroth I gastrectomy (5.6%); however, the difference was not significant. These results indicate that gastrectomy using either Billroth I or Billroth II reconstruction predisposes to gallstone formation. Nevertheless, it was estimated that prior gastrectomy was responsible for no more than 5% of gallstones in the study population.     

人右心室肌纤维方向的解剖

对１１个人心标本沿右心室流入道和流出道各壁长轴纵行切开，再将各壁横切为上、中、下３份，各份按１ｍｍ厚度逐层切开，观察其各层肌纤维方向的角度并绘成坐标图。结果表明，右心室流入、流出道游离壁的肌纤维方向由浅入深基本上是渐变的。流入道游离壁的下１／３和流出道的上１／３，浅中层与内层之间可有纤维方向的突变。流入道隔壁的纤维方向从右向左逐渐移行，偶在左、右室内膜面有方向的改变。流出道右室面的中上部有一纤维方向变动较大的层次。对右心室各壁肌纤维方向的排列特或、分层、功能及其临床意义进行了探讨。