Recently moved to PREP

[Ken2809]

Just wondering if bottoms who were not going bare and then started using prep found themselves with a lot of STI’s after. 

[BootmanLA]

25 minutes ago, Ken2809 said:

Just wondering if bottoms who were not going bare and then started using prep found themselves with a lot of STI’s after. 

Some do, some don't. I realize that doesn't give a lot of information, but these are the things to remember:

1. STIs are an inherent risk with bareback sex. That's not to say that condoms prevent all STIs - they don't, because some spread by skin-to-skin contact even if the genitals don't make direct contact - but there is a higher risk with bareback sex.

2. *On average* - and that's a key qualifier - people who have a lot of bareback sex with multiple partners tend to have more STIs than those who only have occasional sex with one or a limited number of partner(s). It's "on average" because you could have sex with forty guys, none of whom have an STI (and thus you won't contract one), or sex with one guy, who has an STI that you catch. It's like gambling: you might win the (reverse) jackpot on a single pull of a slot machine arm, or you might pull it all night and never get ahead.

3. Sex with guys in an area with a high prevalence of STIs is more likely *on average* to produce an STI than sex with guys in an area with a low prevalence of STIs. That said: Fifty guys may all be having sex with the same two (more promiscuous) guys, but if one of those guys gets an STI, it can easily spread to everyone once the omes who have lots of partners are infected.

4. This is one of the reasons doctors who prescribe PrEP ordinarily order routine STI screening every few months. STIs caught early are easier treated than those that escape detection for months or years, and are less likely to spread.

[drscorpio]

On 2/4/2023 at 1:38 PM, Ken2809 said:

Just wondering if bottoms who were not going bare and then started using prep found themselves with a lot of STI’s after. 

This is anecdote not data, but I had more STIs before I went on PrEP than after. 
The big counteractor is that so many people are now on PrEP and getting regular STI testing. I think that helps keep numbers down.