Don’t blame us- this ain’t our headline
Porn Valley- New York, NY – Investigators with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services recently became aware of four cases of HIV infection related to work in the adult film industry.
These infections occurred despite a widely adopted voluntary program of HIV and STD testing within the adult film industry.
According to the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the first identified case was a 40-year-old man who tested HIV-negative on February 12 and March 17, 2004, but tested positive on April 9.
Dr. H. Rotblatt, with the Los Angeles Department of Public Health, and colleagues report that on April 20, the LA County Department of Health Services began an investigation to identify HIV transmission involving this case.
They found the patient had engaged in unprotected sex while producing a film in Brazil, during the time between his two negative tests. After returning to California, he engaged in unprotected sex with 13 other female partners; three of them tested HIV-positive in April and May, after testing negative the month before.
HIV strains obtained from the four patients and sequenced by the CDC show they were all identical, supporting a conclusion that the male patient was the source of the HIV infection.
In September, the California Department of industrial Relations, Division of Occupational Safety and Health, cited employers of the workers for failing to comply with the state’s bloodborne disease standard, failing to report a serious work-related illness, and failing to prepare and follow a written occupational injury and illness prevention program.
MMWR editors comment that in Los Angeles County there are about 200 production companies employing 1200 workers who engage in direct work-related sexual contact, which is often prolonged and performed without the use of condom.
Investigators conclude that “workers in this industry need to be made aware of the risks associated with participation in various acts, to be able to participate in decision-making about their health and safety at work, and to benefit from prevention practices.”