Hombres sanos: Evaluation of a social marketing campaign for heterosexually identified latino men who have sex with men and women

Objectives. We evaluated the effectiveness of Hombres Sanos [Healthy Men] a social marketing campaign to increase condom use and HIV testing among heterosexually identi?ed Latino men, especially among heterosexually identi?ed Latino men who have sex with men and women (MSMW). Methods. Hombres Sanos was implemented in northern San Diego County, California, from June 2006 through December 2006. Every other month we conducted cross-sectional surveys with independent samples of heterosexually identi?ed Latino men before (n=626), during (n=752), and after (n=385) the campaign. Respondents were randomly selected from 12 targeted community venues to complete an anonymous, self-administered survey on sexual practices and testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. About 5.6% of respondents (n=98) were heterosexually identi?ed Latino MSMW. Results. The intervention was associated with reduced rates of recent unprotected sex with both females and males among heterosexually identi?ed Latino MSMW. The campaignwas also associated with increases in perception of HIV risk, knowledge of testing locations, and condomcarrying among heterosexual Latinos. Conclusions. Social marketing represents a promising approach for abating HIV transmission among heterosexually identi?ed Latinos, particularly for heterosexually identi?ed Latino MSMW. Given the scarcity of evidence-based HIV prevention interventions for these populations, this prevention strategy warrants further investigation.