Page 24 - IJPS-10-4

International Journal of

Population Studies

REVIEW ARTICLE
Health-related challenges faced by men who

had sex with other men amid the COVID-19
pandemic in the context of sexualized drug use

(chemsex): A literature review

Chawapon Sarnkhaowkhom 1 , Kobkul Madican *, Athichai Pankam , and
2
2
Martin Pieter Willemse 3
1 Department of Health Education and Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Public Health, Mahidol
University, Bangkok, Thailand
2 Boromarajonani College of Nursing Uttaradit, Faculty of Nursing, Praboromarajchanok Institute,
Thailand
3 Faculty of Information and Communication Technology, Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom,
Thailand

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has had widespread effects, impacting various aspects of
human life, including sexual behaviors and substance use activities. This article aims
to review and synthesize findings from existing published and unpublished research
*Corresponding author:
Kobkul Madican regarding health-related issues related to sexualized drug use (chemsex) among
(kobkul@unc.ac.th) men who had sex with men (MSM) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The information
was gathered from various databases, and 21 articles were included in this review.
Citation: Sarnkhaowkhom, C.,
Madican, K., Pankam, A. & The results focused on the following seven health-related aspects: (i) Trends in
Willemse, M.P. (2024). Health- chemsex practices among MSM during the pandemic; (ii) sexual behaviors and drug
related challenges faced by men usage issues among MSM during the pandemic; (iii) mental and psychological health
who had sex with other men amid
the COVID-19 pandemic in the issues among MSM participating in chemsex during the pandemic; (iv) challenges
context of sexualized drug use and obstacles regarding health-care service access for MSM during the pandemic;
(chemsex): A literature review. (v) health disparity issues among MSM during the pandemic; (vi) digital health
International Journal of Population
Studies, 10(4): 18-39. technology offering health care to MSM during the pandemic; and (vii) health-care
https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.2599 interventions related to MSM engaging in chemsex during the pandemic. During the
Received: December 31, 2023 pandemic, targeted interventions were required that not only focused on mitigating
physical health risks but also on addressing the mental health and socioeconomic
Accepted: May 15, 2024
challenges faced by MSM participating in chemsex. Moreover, digital health
Published Online: July 3, 2024 technologies and telemedicine offered promising avenues to provide necessary
Copyright: © 2024 Author(s). services remotely during the COVID-19.
This is an Open-Access article
distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution Keywords: Chemsex; COVID-19; Sexualized drug use; Men who have sex with men;
License, permitting distribution, Literature review
and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original work is
properly cited.
Publisher’s Note: AccScience
Publishing remains neutral with 1. Introduction
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional The COVID-19 pandemic has had widespread adverse effects, impacting not only
affiliations. social dynamics but also individual physiological and psychological health (Clemente-

Volume 10 Issue 4 (2024) 18 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.2599