Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN-2 Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention, Canandaigua, NY, USA.
Ann Epidemiol. 2013 Jul;23(7):448-51. doi: 10.1016/j.annepidem.2013.04.009. Epub 2013 May 18.
To provide information about lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) veterans' health status, diagnoses, and health screening behaviors compared with heterosexual veterans.
Data are from 10 states' 2010 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System surveys that contained sexual orientation data for veterans (n = 11,665). χ(2) tests and multiple logistic regression were used to examine outcomes among LGB and heterosexual veterans.
More LGB than heterosexual veterans reported current smoking, not seeking medical care owing to cost, and activity limitations. Compared with heterosexual veterans, LGB veterans had greater odds of ever having an human immunodeficiency virus test (odds ratio [OR], 5.42; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.28-8.96) but lower odds of diabetes diagnosis (OR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.34-0.89).
Findings from this sample suggest patterns of health behaviors and outcomes among LGB veterans that are both unique from and similar to results from general samples of LGB persons. With the formal end of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that discriminated against LGB people in the military, institutions such as the Department of Veterans Affairs are likely to see an increase in its current population of LGB veterans. The Department of Veterans Affairs stands in a unique place to meet the health equity needs of this minority population.
提供有关女同性恋、男同性恋和双性恋（LGB）退伍军人的健康状况、诊断和健康筛查行为的信息，并与异性恋退伍军人进行比较。
数据来自 10 个州 2010 年行为风险因素监测系统调查，其中包含退伍军人的性取向数据（n=11665）。使用 χ²检验和多因素逻辑回归分析来比较 LGB 和异性恋退伍军人的结局。
与异性恋退伍军人相比，更多的 LGB 退伍军人报告当前吸烟、因费用而不寻求医疗保健以及活动受限。与异性恋退伍军人相比，LGB 退伍军人接受人类免疫缺陷病毒检测的可能性更大（比值比[OR]，5.42；95%置信区间[CI]，3.28-8.96），但糖尿病诊断的可能性较小（OR，0.55；95% CI，0.34-0.89）。
本研究样本的结果表明，LGB 退伍军人的健康行为和结果模式既与一般 LGB 人群的结果不同，也有相似之处。随着歧视 LGB 人群的“不问、不说”政策的正式结束，退伍军人事务部等机构可能会看到其当前 LGB 退伍军人人数的增加。退伍军人事务部处于一个独特的位置，可以满足这一少数群体的健康公平需求。
