Health care problems of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender patients

About 10% of the population is lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender.1,2 These people face health care risks that are often not addressed because of lack of knowledge of the patient's sexual orientation, ignorance of specific health care issues, or because the patient feels that the health care professional is homophobic. The goals of this article are to educate health care professionals on specific health care issues faced by this community. Only a limited amount of information is available on health care risks within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender population. Most studies do not address sexual orientation. Fear of stigmatization prevents many people from identifying themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. In addition, many do not seek health care (and are therefore excluded from health studies) because of prior negative experience. As many as two thirds of physicians never ask patients about their sexual orientation.3 Some health care professionals assume that their patients are heterosexual. Others may be homophobic and hostile and prefer to avoid the issue.