HIV Risk among Substance-Using Men Who Have Sex with Men and Women (MSMW): Findings from South Florida

Compared with men who have sex with men only (MSMO), men who have sex with men and women (MSMW) consistently report higher rates of two HIV risk behaviors: transactional sex (TS) and concurrent substance use and sex (CSS). Within MSMW, little is known about how synergistic epidemics ( syndemics ) affect TS and CSS. Using a sample of substance-using MSM (n = 515) in South Florida, we compared TS and CSS among MSMO and MSMW; examined whether, within MSMW (n = 86), TS and CSS predict unprotected anal intercourse with partners of serodiscordant/unknown HIV status (SU-UAI); and tested whether syndemics predict TS and CSS. MSMW reported higher rates of engaging in both TS and CSS (AOR = 1.7; 95 % CI 1.0-3.0). Within MSMW, engagement in both TS and CSS predicted SU-UAI (AOR = 3.3; 95 % CI 1.2-9.6); and syndemics predicted TS and CSS involvement (p \u3c 0.01). Substance-using MSMW may benefit from interventions targeting TS, CSS, and background syndemics

A Discussion of Value Metrics for Data Repositories in Earth and Environmental Sciences

Despite growing recognition of the importance of public data to the modern economy and to scientific progress, long-term investment in the repositories that manage and disseminate scientific data in easily accessible-ways remains elusive. Repositories are asked to demonstrate that there is a net value of their data and services to justify continued funding or attract new funding sources. Here, representatives from a number of environmental and Earth science repositories evaluate approaches for assessing the costs and benefits of publishing scientific data in their repositories, identifying various metrics that repositories typically use to report on the impact and value of their data products and services, plus additional metrics that would be useful but are not typically measured. We rated each metric by (a) the difficulty of implementation by our specific repositories and (b) its importance for value determination. As managers of environmental data repositories, we find that some of the most easily obtainable data-use metrics (such as data downloads and page views) may be less indicative of value than metrics that relate to discoverability and broader use. Other intangible but equally important metrics (e.g., laws or regulations impacted, lives saved, new proposals generated), will require considerable additional research to describe and develop, plus resources to implement at scale. As value can only be determined from the point of view of a stakeholder, it is likely that multiple sets of metrics will be needed, tailored to specific stakeholder needs. Moreover, economically based analyses or the use of specialists in the field are expensive and can happen only as resources permit

Early observed transient prostate-specific antigen elevations on a pilot study of external beam radiation therapy and fractionated MRI guided High Dose Rate brachytherapy boost

PURPOSE: To report early observation of transient PSA elevations on this pilot study of external beam radiation therapy and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) guided high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy boost. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eleven patients with intermediate-risk and high-risk localized prostate cancer received MRI guided HDR brachytherapy (10.5 Gy each fraction) before and after a course of external beam radiotherapy (46 Gy). Two patients continued on hormones during follow-up and were censored for this analysis. Four patients discontinued hormone therapy after RT. Five patients did not receive hormones. PSA bounce is defined as a rise in PSA values with a subsequent fall below the nadir value or to below 20% of the maximum PSA level. Six previously published definitions of biochemical failure to distinguish true failure from were tested: definition 1, rise >0.2 ng/mL; definition 2, rise >0.4 ng/mL; definition 3, rise >35% of previous value; definition 4, ASTRO defined guidelines, definition 5 nadir + 2 ng/ml, and definition 6, nadir + 3 ng/ml. RESULTS: Median follow-up was 24 months (range 18–36 mo). During follow-up, the incidence of transient PSA elevation was: 55% for definition 1, 44% for definition 2, 55% for definition 3, 33% for definition 4, 11% for definition 5, and 11% for definition 6. CONCLUSION: We observed a substantial incidence of transient elevations in PSA following combined external beam radiation and HDR brachytherapy for prostate cancer. Such elevations seem to be self-limited and should not trigger initiation of salvage therapies. No definition of failure was completely predictive

Drinking behaviour and alcohol-related harm amongst older adults: analysis of existing UK datasets.

Older adults experience age-related physiological changes that increase sensitivity and decrease tolerance to alcohol and there are a number of age-related harms such as falls, social isolation and elder abuse, which are compounded by alcohol misuse. Despite this unique vulnerability and the fact that the number of older adults is increasing, the literature on drinking behaviour and alcohol-related harm in older adults is sparse. This article describes a secondary analysis of UK data to address this knowledge gap

An Intervention to Reduce HIV Risk Behavior of Substance-Using Men Who Have Sex with Men: A Two-Group Randomized Trial with a Nonrandomized Third Group

In a randomized trial of a behavioral intervention among substance-using men who have sex with men, aimed at reducing sexual risk behavior, Mansergh and colleagues fail to find evidence of a reduction in risk from the intervention

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HIV-related discrimination reported by people living with HIV in London, UK

The objective was to examine the extent to which people living with HIV in London reported being discriminated against because of their infection. In 2004–2005, people living with HIV attending NHS outpatient HIV clinics in north east London were asked: “Have you ever been treated unfairly or differently because of your HIV status—in other words discriminated against?”. Of the 1,687 people who returned a questionnaire (73% response rate), data from 1,385 respondents were included in this analysis; 448 heterosexual women and 210 heterosexual men of black African origin, 727 gay/bisexual men (621 white, 106 ethnic minority). Overall, nearly one-third of respondents (29.9%, 414/1,385) said they had been discriminated against because of their HIV infection. Of those who reported experiencing HIV-related discrimination, almost a half (49.6%, 200/403) said this had involved a health care worker including their dentist (n = 102, 25.3%) or primary care physician (n = 70, 17.4%)

Predictors of Unrecognized HIV Infection Among Poor and Ethnic Men Who Have Sex with Men in Los Angeles

This study evaluates associations between unrecognized HIV infection and demographic factors, internalized homonegativity, drug use, and sexual behaviors among HIV positive men who have sex with men (MSM). We analyzed data from 347 HIV positive participants from the Los Angeles site for NIDA’s Sexual Acquisition and Transmission of HIV-Cooperative Agreement Program. Participants were HIV positive MSM and MSM/W and predominantly African American (36.0%) or Latino (38.7%), and unemployed (82.8%). Results from a multivariate logistic regression suggest that, compared to HIV positive participants who correctly reported their HIV positive status, being African-American (OR: 9.81, CI: 1.2–77.9) or Latino (OR: 10.92, CI: 1.3–88.4) rather than White, MSM/W rather than MSM (OR: 3.24, CI: 1.09–9.62), and having higher homonegativity scores (OR: 1.22, CI: 1.02–1.4) is associated with unrecognized HIV infection, controlling for age, education, and homelessness. Findings provide some immediate evidence to help craft HIV prevention interventions

GeneXpert—A Game-Changer for Tuberculosis Control?

Carlton Evans considers whether the new tuberculosis diagnostic test, GeneXpert, is the solution for TB control that it's said to be

Evolutionary and Experimental Assessment of Novel Markers for Detection of Xanthomonas euvesicatoria in Plant Samples

BACKGROUND: Bacterial spot-causing xanthomonads (BSX) are quarantine phytopathogenic bacteria responsible for heavy losses in tomato and pepper production. Despite the research on improved plant spraying methods and resistant cultivars, the use of healthy plant material is still considered as the most effective bacterial spot control measure. Therefore, rapid and efficient detection methods are crucial for an early detection of these phytopathogens. METHODOLOGY: In this work, we selected and validated novel DNA markers for reliable detection of the BSX Xanthomonas euvesicatoria (Xeu). Xeu-specific DNA regions were selected using two online applications, CUPID and Insignia. Furthermore, to facilitate the selection of putative DNA markers, a customized C program was designed to retrieve the regions outputted by both databases. The in silico validation was further extended in order to provide an insight on the origin of these Xeu-specific regions by assessing chromosomal location, GC content, codon usage and synteny analyses. Primer-pairs were designed for amplification of those regions and the PCR validation assays showed that most primers allowed for positive amplification with different Xeu strains. The obtained amplicons were labeled and used as probes in dot blot assays, which allowed testing the probes against a collection of 12 non-BSX Xanthomonas and 23 other phytopathogenic bacteria. These assays confirmed the specificity of the selected DNA markers. Finally, we designed and tested a duplex PCR assay and an inverted dot blot platform for culture-independent detection of Xeu in infected plants. SIGNIFICANCE: This study details a selection strategy able to provide a large number of Xeu-specific DNA markers. As demonstrated, the selected markers can detect Xeu in infected plants both by PCR and by hybridization-based assays coupled with automatic data analysis. Furthermore, this work is a contribution to implement more efficient DNA-based methods of bacterial diagnostics