Oral/oropharyngeal “selfies” in gay and bisexual men: a pilot study exploring oropharyngeal screening for HPV-related possible malignancies

ObjectivesThis study aims to determine the potential uptake and quality of oropharyngeal “selfies” taken by gay/bisexual men as a screening approach for HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer.MethodsFrom 1,699 gay/bisexual men in the US, surveyed about knowledge and attitudes to HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer, a random sample of 320 men were invited to take an oropharyngeal “selfie” by smartphone and send it to the study website: 113 (35.5%) did so. Images were rated for quality by three healthcare professional raters blinded to each other's rating, with an otolaryngologist as the gold standard. In the second wave, those whose images were rated as unacceptable were sent a short instructional video and asked to send another image. Of the 65 invited, 46 did so. An additional 15.2% sent acceptable images, and a total of 28.3% of the sample was acceptable.ResultsA total of 1,121 men willing to participate in the future study who believed they could take a quality “oral selfie” were potentially eligible for this activity. A random sample of 320 participated: 153 participants started (47.8%) and 113 participants (35.3%) submitted an image. Responders were more likely to be younger, have higher knowledge scores on oropharyngeal HPV-related cancer, and have had HPV vaccination. There was high agreement between the three raters. Images of good/acceptable quality were 22.1%; oropharynx partially occluded images were 29.2%; oropharynx not visible images were 18.6%; images too dark were 21.2%; and images too small were 8.8%. From the second wave of requests with instructional videos, an additional 15.2% sent in quality images, with the remaining issues being partial occlusion of the tonsils by the tongue.ConclusionOne-third of the invited gay and bisexual men sent oropharyngeal selfie images to the study website and a total of 28.3% were of clinically acceptable quality. Following an instructional video on poorer-quality images, additional quality images were received. One barrier, i.e., partial occlusion of the oropharynx by the tongue remained. Quality oropharyngeal “selfies” are obtainable online

Pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention in women: current perspectives

There are ~900,000 new HIV infections among women every year, representing nearly half of all new HIV infections globally. In the US, nearly one-fifth of all new HIV infections occur among women, and women from racial and ethnic minority communities experience disproportionately high rates of new HIV infections. Thus, there is a need to develop and implement effective HIV prevention strategies for women in the US and internationally, with a specific need to advance strategies in minority communities. Previous studies have demonstrated that oral HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the use of antiretroviral medications by HIV-uninfected persons to prevent HIV acquisition, can reduce HIV incidence among women who are adherent to PrEP. However, to date, awareness and uptake of PrEP among women have been very limited, suggesting a need for innovative strategies to increase the knowledge of and access to PrEP among women in diverse settings. This narrative review summarizes the efficacy and safety data of PrEP in women, discusses considerations related to medication adherence for women who use PrEP, and highlights behavioral, social, and structural barriers to maximize the effectiveness of PrEP in women. It also reviews novel modalities for PrEP in women which are being developed and tested, including topical formulations and long-acting injectable agents that may offer advantages as compared to oral PrEP and proposes a community-oriented, social networking framework to increase awareness of PrEP among women. If women are provided with access to PrEP and support to overcome social and structural barriers to adhere to PrEP, this prevention strategy holds great promise to impact the HIV epidemic among women in the US and globally

Single tablet HIV regimens facilitate virologic suppression and retention in care among treatment naïve patients\u3csup\u3e*\u3c/sup\u3e

Newer HIV regimens are typically taken once daily but vary in the number of pills required. Whether the number of pills in a once-daily HIV regimen affects clinical outcomes is unknown. We retrospectively compared adherence, retention in care, and virologic outcomes between patients starting a once daily single-tablet regimen (STR) to patients starting a once-daily multi-tablet regimen (MTR) in a publicly funded clinic in the United States. Outcomes were measured in the year after starting ART and included retention in care, virologic suppression, and medication possession ratio of at least 80%. Data from patients initiating therapy from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2011 were analyzed with both unadjusted and propensity-score adjusted regression. Overall, 622 patients started with an STR (100% efavirenz-based) and 406 with an MTR (65% atazanavir-based and 35% darunavir-based) regimen. Retention in care was achieved in 80.7% of STR patients vs. 72.7% of MTR patients (unadjusted OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.17–2.11; adjusted OR 1.49, 95% CI 1.10–2.02). Virologic suppression occurred among 84.4% of STR patients vs. 77.6% of MTR patients (unadjusted OR 1.56; 95% CI 1.14–2.15; adjusted OR 1.41; 95% CI 1.02–1.96). There was no difference in the proportion of patients achieving at least 80% adherence, as measured by medication possession ratio (33.0% of STR patients and 30.1% of MTR patients; unadjusted OR 1.14; 95% CI 0.87–1.50; adjusted OR 1.04, CI 0.79–1.38). While it is difficult to eliminate confounding in this observational study, retention in care and virologic outcomes were better in patients prescribed STRs

Correlates of Linkage to HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis Among HIV-Testing Clients.

BACKGROUND: Publicly funded HIV-testing sites can identify HIV preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) candidates and provide PrEP linkage. SETTING: Harris Health System\u27s HIV clinic, HIV-testing program, and HIV-prevention program (HPP) in Houston, TX, a high HIV-incidence city. METHODS: A prospective assessment of individuals aged 18 years and older recruited from walk-in HIV testing from December 2013 to April 2015 included risk assessment, HIV testing, and self-administered survey, with follow-up surveys at 6 and 12 months and medical record review. RESULTS: The mean age of our sample (n = 300) was 38.3 ± 11.7 years. Men constituted 63.1% of the sample and 53.7% were black non-Hispanic, 26.3% Hispanic, and 14.7% white non-Hispanic. Most were uninsured (63.5%). Only 27% always used condoms, although 67% perceived personal HIV risk. Of 300 participants, 64 (21.3%) linked to PrEP care and 49 (16.3%) took PrEP. In multivariable analysis, compared with heterosexual men, women [adjusted OR (aOR) 4.1, 95% CI: 1.5 to 11.1] and MSM (aOR 10.2, 95% CI: 3.4 to 31.0) were more likely to attend HPP and to take PrEP (aOR 3.0, 95% CI: 1.6 to 15.1 and 3.0, 95% CI: 1.1 to 8.3, respectively). Serodiscordance and PrEP interest correlated with program attendance (aOR 14.0, 95% CI: 6.1 to 32.3 and aOR 6.7, 95% CI: 1.8 to 25.4) and taking PrEP (aOR 13.1, 95% CI: 5.2 to 32.8 and 14.4, 95% CI: 1.8 to 166.9), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Preexposure prophylaxis interest, being female or MSM, and serodiscordance correlated with PrEP linkage. Safety-net health systems can facilitate PrEP access in marginalized populations, but the PrEP initiation rates remain low

Knowledge and Attitudes about Prep and Npep among a 7-city Sample of Homeless Young Adults

Purpose: Despite evidence suggesting that they are 16 times more likely to become HIV+ than their housed peers, homeless youth have low rates of uptake and adherence to PrEP or nPEP. Notwithstanding the documented HIV risk and the potential for PrEP and nPEP as feasible prevention strategies, little research has been conducted to determine the knowledge and attitudes regarding PrEP and nPEP among homeless young adults. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey (2016–2017) among homeless youth 18–25 years old recruited from drop-in centers and shelters in 7 cities in the United States (New York, St. Louis, Denver, Phoenix, Houston, Los Angeles, and San Jose) to assess knowledge and attitudes regarding PrEP and nPEP to inform HIV prevention intervention development. Results: Participants (n = 1427) were primarily youth of color (37% Black, 17% Hispanic, 16% mixed, 11% other), 32% LGBTQ, male (58%), female (35%), or transgender (5%), with a mean age of 20.9 years. Regarding PrEP, 4% of the sample had talked with their provider about PrEP; while 71% had low to no knowledge of PrEP. Despite no/low knowledge, 59% reported they were likely or extremely likely to take PrEP if recommended by their doctor. Significant knowledge differences were found by gender identity and location; transgender youth reported higher knowledge than cisgender males or females (f = 26.48, p \u3c .01), and youth in Los Angeles and New York reported the highest PrEP knowledge (f = 19.45, p \u3c .01). Transgender youth also reported significantly more interest in PrEP than cisgender males or females (f = 12.15, p \u3c .01), though interest was high in the total sample. Access to free PrEP (55%), HIV testing (72%), healthcare (68%), one-on-one counseling on PrEP use (62%), and text messaging support (57%) were all rated as very important or extremely important for PrEP uptake and adherence among participants. Youth had low rates of post-sexual assault healthcare seeking behaviors when nPEP may be indicated for HIV prevention; 71% of youth did not seek post-assault examination despite 24% of youth being sexually assaulted since becoming homeless. Barriers to post-sexual assault examination included not wanting to involve the legal system (21%), not thinking it was important (17%), not knowing what a post-sexual assault exam was (12%), not having health insurance (11%), or being unable to safely leave the situation (9%). Conclusions: Results of this study suggest several missed opportunities to prevent new HIV infections among homeless youth. Despite the high risk for HIV among this vulnerable population, PrEP knowledge remains low. Though, once informed, interest in PrEP uptake is high. Efforts to increase PrEP uptake and adherence among homeless youth should consider provider and systems level interventions to decrease PrEP associated healthcare costs, improve access to PrEP providers, and provide both in-person and text messaging support. Further, interventions to address the importance of and reduce system and individual-level barriers to sexual assault examinations can improve HIV prevention efforts among homeless youth. Further research is needed to design and test the efficacy of HIV prevention interventions on PrEP and nPEP uptake and adherence among homeless youth

Knowledge and Attitudes about Pre-exposure Prophylaxis among Young Adults Experiencing Homelessness in Seven U.S. Cities.

Purpose Evidence suggests that young adults experiencing homelessness (YEH) are at elevated risk of HIV compared to housed youth. Given the limited research on pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) awareness among YEH, this study examined their PrEP knowledge and attitudes. Methods Data from a cross-sectional survey among YEH (ages 18–26) (n = 1,427) in seven U.S. cities were used to assess their knowledge and attitudes regarding PrEP to inform HIV prevention efforts. Results Participants were primarily male youth of color. The mean age was 20.9years. While 66% felt at risk for HIV, only 14% strongly agreed that they try to protect themselves from getting infected with HIV. Most (84%) were eligible for PrEP based on risk, yet only 29% had knowledge of PrEP. Despite this, 59% reported they were likely/extremely likely to take PrEP. Access to free PrEP (55%), HIV testing (72%), healthcare (68%), and one-on-one (62%), and text messaging support (57%) were rated as very/extremely important for PrEP uptake and adherence. Conclusions The results of this study suggest missed opportunities to prevent new HIV infections among YEH. Efforts to increase PrEP uptake among this population should consider provider- and system-level interventions to increase PrEP awareness, decrease PrEP-associated healthcare costs, improve access to PrEP providers, and provide in-person and text messaging support

Implications for PrEP Uptake in Young Adults Experiencing Homelessness: A Mixed Methods Study.

Youth experiencing homelessness (YEH) have a high risk of contracting HIV; however, they remain relatively unreached by pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)-based HIV prevention initiatives. We used a cross-sectional mixed-methods study to explore PrEP knowledge, interest, facilitators, and barriers among YEH. Young adults were recruited from agencies serving YEH in Houston, TX (n = 30) and Los Angeles, CA (n = 15) to participate in an electronic self-report survey and a semistructured interview. Survey results indicate that 68.2% of YEH had low or no prior knowledge of PrEP, though 63.7% reported interest in taking PrEP. Qualitative results revealed facilitators of PrEP use, including high PrEP acceptability and awareness, and supportive social networks. Several barriers emerged, including medication-related barriers, adherence, cost, access barriers, low perceived HIV risk, perceived stigma of PrEP use, and low PrEP awareness. Despite high PrEP acceptability, PrEP use among YEH remains low partly due to low PrEP awareness, low perceived HIV risk, and medical mistrust