Serosorting

Serosorting is the practice of seeking to only engage in risky sexual activities with partners who are of the same HIV status as yourself. This practice has been reported becoming common among gay men in some communities, as a measure to reduce the risk of acquiring HIV infection.

Serosorting is not free of risk. Firstly, some people may not be sure of their true HIV status, or lie about it. Even a recent negative HIV test may not be definitive, if they are still within the window period after a recent infection. Secondly, just because someone does not have the HIV virus does not mean that they are free of other sexually transmitted diseases such as syphilis or hepatitis B.

Thirdly, unprotected sex between two HIV+ people is not free of risk. There is a great deal of genetic variability within individual HIV virus populations and this variability is shuffled and mutated every time the virus reproduces inside a cell in the body. There are millions of viruses in the body of an infected person. Modern drug cocktails keep virus and mutation levels low but eventually drug resistance will develop. Unprotected sex between two HIV+ individuals does risk that one with a less aggressive, drug susceptible strain of the virus who might have kept his infection well under the control of the available drugs, might find him or herself with an aggressively drug resistant strain.