Poster Session 5: Mental, Physical, and Sexual Health

Presenters: Roula Kteily-Hawa, Aceel Hawa, David Gogolishvili,  Mohammad Al Akel, Nicole Andruszkiewicz, Haran Vijayanathan, Mona Loutfy

Summary
Middle East and North Africa Region (MENA) has witnessed an alarming increase in HIV infections, the highest documented increase among all regions in the world. This scoping review fills a gap in the literature and seeks to establish epidemiological risk factors and underlying risk behaviors for youth residing in or originating from the MENA region. Preliminary results demonstrate that young men who have sex with men (MSM) engage in risky behaviors including condomless sex, multiple sexual partnerships, transactional sex and concurrent drug use. Youth who inject drugs have a significantly higher probability of having multiple HIV risks compared to their older counterparts. Sociocultural shifts in the region have reshaped risk contexts. Findings will address existing gaps and inform interventions involving MENA youth in North America.

Objectives
-- To conduct a scoping review of the literature involvingHIV risk behaviors of youth (ages 16-29) from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and identify gaps in current research evidence.
-- To establish epidemiological risk factors and underlying risk behaviors for youth residing in or originating from the MENA region.
-- To shed light on existing gaps in the literature by providing evidence to inform the development of interventions targeting MENA youth in North America.

Subject Codes: public health, biobehavioral processes, sexuality
Population Codes: substance use/abuse, emerging/young adulthood, gay
Method and Approach Codes: systematic literature review, prevention, multicultural