Here is a link to the interesting story presented by the CBC about HIV infection rates in older Canadians who winter in Florida: http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2009/11/18/sex-snowbirds-seniors-hiv.html. The research is out of the University of Waterloo, and was presented at this week’s Ontario HIV Treatment Network’s Research at the Front Lines Conference in Toronto http://www.ohtn.on.ca/Pages/Whats-On/2009-ConferenceProgAtAGlance.aspx
I am posting this because one of the things I have noticed is that many of my colleagues as well as older physicians do not talk about issues related to sexual lives of older people. I don’t know if they don’t think this is important, if it is too embarrassing to ask about, or if the perception prevails that older people don’t want to talk about this – but we, as health care professionals, have a duty to ensure that our patients are informed if there is anything that poses a health risk. I truly believe that prevention is the best medicine (where feasible), and I think this is an area that must be delved into just as deeply as their eating habits, drinking, or bowel movements. I mean, we ask about urination and bowels all the time, yet we are too (whatever the right adjective might be) to ask about a very important and relevant part of a person’s life!!
Ok, now that I’ve had my rant:) I think this is a great study, a good start for further research. The caveat in the abstract is that this study is hopefully a prelude to another larger-scale look at whether the HIV infection rates among Floridian seniors are the same (perhaps it’s something about the location!). That said, the details out of the study are alarming to any primary care practitioner in terms of clinical practice and ensuring that all aspects of our older patients’ lives are considered when sitting down with your patient to jointly decide what test needs to be done, how often to show up for follow-up exams, etc