An Intervention to Increase Condom Use Among Users of Chlamydia Self-Sampling Websites (Wrapped): Intervention Mapping and Think-Aloud Study.

BACKGROUND: Young people aged 16-24 years are disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections (STIs). STIs can have serious health consequences for affected individuals and the estimated annual cost of treatment to the National Health Service is £620 million. Accordingly, the UK government has made reducing the rates of STIs among this group a priority. A missed opportunity to intervene to increase condom use is when young people obtain self-sampling kits for STIs via the internet. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to develop a theory-based tailored intervention to increase condom use for 16-24-years-olds accessing chlamydia self-sampling websites. METHODS: The intervention, Wrapped, was developed using Intervention Mapping and was co-designed with young people. The following steps were performed: (1) identification of important determinants of condom use and evidence of their changeability using computer and digital interventions; (2) setting the intervention goal, performance objectives, and change objectives; (3) identification of Behavior Change Principles (BCPs) and practical strategies to target these determinants; and (4) development of intervention materials able to deliver the BCPs and practical strategies. RESULTS: Users of existing chlamydia self-sampling websites are signposted to Wrapped after placing an order for a sampling kit. Salient barriers to condom use are identified by each user and relevant intervention components are allocated to target these. The components include the following: (1) a sample box of condoms, (2) an online condom distribution service, (3) a product for carrying condoms, (4) a condom demonstration video, (5) a series of videos on communication about condom use, and (6) erotic films of real couples discussing and demonstrating condom use. CONCLUSIONS: This intervention will be directed at young people who may be particularly receptive to messages and support for behavior change due to their testing status

The Men’s Safer Sex project: intervention development and feasibility randomised controlled trial of an interactive digital intervention to increase condom use in men

Background: This report details the development of the Men’s Safer Sex website and the results of a feasibility randomised controlled trial (RCT), health economic assessment and qualitative evaluation. Objectives: (1) Develop the Men’s Safer Sex website to address barriers to condom use; (2) determine the best design for an online RCT; (3) inform the methods for collecting and analysing health economic data; (4) assess the Sexual Quality of Life (SQoL) questionnaire and European Quality of Life-5 Dimensions, three-level version (EQ-5D-3L) to calculate quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs); and (5) explore clinic staff and men’s views of online research methodology. Methods: (1) Website development: we combined evidence from research literature and the views of experts (n = 18) and male clinic users (n = 43); (2) feasibility RCT: 159 heterosexually active men were recruited from three sexual health clinics and were randomised by computer to the Men’s Safer Sex website plus usual care (n = 84) or usual clinic care only (n = 75). Men were invited to complete online questionnaires at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months, and sexually transmitted infection (STI) diagnoses were recorded from clinic notes at 12 months; (3) health economic evaluation: we investigated the impact of using different questionnaires to calculate utilities and QALYs (the EQ-5D-3L and SQoL questionnaire), and compared different methods to collect resource use; and (4) qualitative evaluation: thematic analysis of interviews with 11 male trial participants and nine clinic staff, as well as free-text comments from online outcome questionnaires. Results: (1) Software errors and clinic Wi-Fi access presented significant challenges. Response rates for online questionnaires were poor but improved with larger vouchers (from 36% with £10 to 50% with £30). Clinical records were located for 94% of participants for STI diagnoses. There were no group differences in condomless sex with female partners [incidence rate ratio (IRR) 1.01, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.52 to 1.96]. New STI diagnoses were recorded for 8.8% (7/80) of the intervention group and 13.0% (9/69) of the control group (IRR 0.75, 95% CI 0.29 to 1.89). (2) Health-care resource data were more complete using patient files than questionnaires. The probability that the intervention is cost-effective is sensitive to the source of data used and whether or not data on intended pregnancies are included. (3) The pilot RCT fitted well around clinical activities but 37% of the intervention group did not see the Men’s Safer Sex website and technical problems were frustrating. Men’s views of the Men’s Safer Sex website and research procedures were largely positive. Conclusions: It would be feasible to conduct a large-scale RCT using clinic STI diagnoses as a primary outcome; however, technical errors and a poor response rate limited the collection of online self-reported outcomes. The next steps are (1) to optimise software for online trials, (2) to find the best ways to integrate digital health promotion with clinical services, (3) to develop more precise methods for collecting resource use data and (4) to work out how to overcome barriers to digital intervention testing and implementation in the NHS. Trial registration: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN18649610. Funding: This project was funded by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment programme and will be published in full in Health Technology Assessment; Vol. 20, No. 91. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information

Maintenance of Miranda Localization in <i>Drosophila</i> Neuroblasts Involves Interaction with the Cognate mRNA

International audienc

Signal yields, energy resolution, and recombination fluctuations in liquid xenon

This work presents an analysis of monoenergetic electronic recoil peaks in the dark-matter-search and calibration data from the first underground science run of the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) detector. Liquid xenon charge and light yields for electronic recoil energies between 5.2 and 661.7 keV are measured, as well as the energy resolution for the LUX detector at those same energies. Additionally, there is an interpretation of existing measurements and descriptions of electron-ion recombination fluctuations in liquid xenon as limiting cases of a more general liquid xenon re- combination fluctuation model. Measurements of the standard deviation of these fluctuations at monoenergetic electronic recoil peaks exhibit a linear dependence on the number of ions for energy deposits up to 661.7 keV, consistent with previous LUX measurements between 2-16 keV with $^3$H. We highlight similarities in liquid xenon recombination for electronic and nuclear recoils with a comparison of recombination fluctuations measured with low-energy calibration data.Comment: 11 pages, 12 figures, 3 table