Prevalence of psychoactive substance use in men who have sexual relationships with men, Colombia.

Introduction: The use of psychoactive substances (PS) in the population is a current problem that affects a large part of humanity, with diverse consequences.

Objective: To analyze the factors associated with the consumption of PS among men who have sex with other men (MSM) in three Colombian cities.

Material and methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study used the respondent-driven sampling (RDS) method and obtained a sample of 1301 MSM. The association between the sociodemographic and personal characteristics and the consumption of PS was assessed using the chi-square test. Prevalence ratios were calculated along with their 95% confidence intervals. For the multivariate analysis, a Poisson regression with a log link and robust estimator was employed to explore the factors associated with PS use.

Results: The prevalence of consumption of PS in the last year was 87%, prevailing the consumption of alcohol, marijuana, and poppers. Having occasional partners (PR: 0.44; 95% CI 0.29 - 0.67), attending public places or establishments such as bars and saunas (PR: 3.39; 95% CI 2.34 - 4.91), sex work, and not using a condom in the last sexual encounter (PR: 2.10 95% CI 1.37 - 3.22) are factors associated with the use of these substances.

Discussion: There is evidence of a high prevalence of recreational use of PS, even higher than that found in the general population.

Conclusion: A high prevalence and association with risky sexual behaviors is confirmed, which requires promotion and prevention actions to reduce the use of these substances.