Transgender Individuals and Digital Health
AbstractPurpose of reviewThe goal of this review is to assess the use of digital technologies to promote the health and well-being of transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people.Recent findingsTGD individuals experience numerous health disparities, including low uptake of HIV prevention strategies, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis, increased HIV incidence, and suboptimal HIV-related outcomes. These health disparities are the result of widespread intersectional stigma on the basis of gender identity, gender expression, socioeconomic class, race, and ethnicity, which negatively impact access to general medical and transgende...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - September 22, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Overcoming Vaccine Hesitancy for Future COVID-19 and HIV Vaccines: Lessons from Measles and HPV Vaccines
ConclusionStrategies could be used alone or in combination with others. The most successful interventions directly targeted the population for vaccination. Use of financial incentives could be a potential tool to improve vaccine uptake. (Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports)
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - September 17, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Long-Acting Injectable Cabotegravir for HIV Prevention: What Do We Know and Need to Know about the Risks and Consequences of Cabotegravir Resistance?
AbstractPurpose of ReviewCabotegravir is a potent integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI) recently approved as a long-acting injectable formulation for HIV prevention (CAB-LA). We summarize what is known about cabotegravir pharmacokinetics, activity, and emergence of resistance from in vitro, macaque and clinical studies, and we evaluate the risk of resistance from CAB-LA with on-time injections and after CAB-LA discontinuation.Recent FindingsThe accumulation of multiple INSTI mutations is required for high-level cabotegravir resistance, and the same mutation combinations may cause cross-resistance to dolutegravir, whi...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - September 16, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
HIV Care Meets Telehealth: a Review of Successes, Disparities, and Unresolved Challenges
AbstractPurpose of ReviewThis review summarizes the current state of telehealth utilization in HIV care delivery by highlighting successes, gaps, and unresolved challenges related to access, disparities, care providers in and standardization of policies and protocol.Recent FindingsTelehealth adoption in HIV care delivery in the USA has been successful. Despite this success, racial minority groups, older adults, and individuals with low telehealth literacy report low preference, dissatisfaction, and experience poorer health outcomes than other groups. Lack of broadband access, compatible devices, standardization, and govern...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - September 5, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Ingestible Electronic Sensors for Monitoring Real-time Adherence to HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis and Antiretroviral Therapy
AbstractPurpose of ReviewThis review summarizes the recent advancements and future directions of digital pill systems (DPS) — which utilize ingestible sensors to directly measure medication ingestion events in real-time — in the context of HIV prevention and treatment.Recent FindingsTwo DPS are cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration. The bioequivalence and stability of digitized pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) have been established, and pilot studies have demonstrated the feasibility and acceptability of using DPS for PrEP and ART adherence measurement. Important bioethical and ...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - September 1, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Measuring and Addressing Stigma Within HIV Interventions for People Who Use Drugs: a Scoping Review of Recent Research
AbstractPurpose of ReviewPersistent stigma remains a crucial barrier to HIV prevention and treatment services among people who use drugs (PWUD), particularly for those living with or at-risk for HIV. This scoping review examines the current state of science with regard to approaches for measuring and addressing stigma within HIV interventions among PWUD.Recent FindingsSixteen studies fit the inclusion criteria for this review. Half the studies originated within the USA, and the remaining represented four different regions. Within these studies, stigma was measured using various quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods....
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - September 1, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Using Behavioral Economics to Support PrEP Adherence for HIV Prevention
AbstractPurpose of ReviewWe explored different behavioral economics (BE) mechanisms through which pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) initiation and adherence could be impacted and examined recent work using BE principles to further HIV prevention efforts. We also generated new intervention ideas based on existing HIV testing and ART adherence literature.Recent FindingsThere is limited work that uses BE principles to design interventions to increase PrEP initiation and adherence, mostly involving financial incentives. The recent works highlighted involve financial incentives and demonstrate that key populations are open to acc...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - August 31, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
HIV Prevention Tools Across the Pregnancy Continuum: What Works, What Does Not, and What Can We Do Differently?
AbstractPurpose of ReviewMultiple tools exist to support the primary prevention of HIV in pregnant and postpartum women; however, there are opportunities to enhance their use and impact. This review summarizes the current status of HIV prevention tools and existing gaps and opportunities to improve their use along the pregnancy care continuum.Recent FindingsHIV screening efforts have steadily improved with close to universal screening of pregnant women in several East and Southern African countries. Strategies to implement partner testing through the distribution of HIV self-test kits are promising though linkage to care r...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - August 19, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Ectopic Fat and Cardiac Health in People with HIV: Serious as a Heart Attack
This study aims to summarize knowledge of alterations in adipose tissue distribution among people with HIV (PWH), with a focus on the cardiac depot and how this relates to the known higher risk of cardiovascular disease in this unique population.Recent FindingsSimilar to the general population, cardiac fat depots mirror visceral adipose tissue in PWH. However, altered fat distribution, altered fat quality, and higher prevalence of enlarged epicardial adipose tissue depots are associated with increased coronary artery disease among PWH.SummaryAdipose tissue disturbances present in PWH ultimately contribute to increased risk...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - August 13, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
COVID-19 Outcomes and Risk Factors Among People Living with HIV
AbstractPurpose of ReviewIn this review, we examine the intersection of the HIV and COVID-19 epidemics with focus on COVID-19-related health outcomes and risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 among people living with HIV (PLWH).Recent FindingsEvidence to date do not suggest a higher incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection among PLWH compared to the general population, although —once exposed—PLWH are at greater risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes. Key risk factors for severe COVID-19 include non-HIV comorbidities known to be associated with severe disease, as well as HIV-specific risk factors such as low CD4 + T-cell count, unsuppress...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - August 5, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Applying Behavioural Insights to HIV Prevention and Management: a Scoping Review
AbstractPurpose of ReviewThis scoping review summarises the literature on HIV prevention and management interventions utilizing behavioural economic principles encapsulated in the MINDSPACE framework.Recent FindingsMINDSPACE is an acronym developed by the UK ’s behavioural insights team to summarise nine key influences on human behaviour: Messenger, Incentives, Norms, Default, Salience, Priming, Affect, Commitment, and Ego. These effects have been used in various settings to design interventions that encourage positive behaviours. Currently, over 200 institutionalised behavioural insight teams exist internationally, whic...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - August 5, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Running with Scissors: a Systematic Review of Substance Use and the Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Care Continuum Among Sexual Minority Men
AbstractPurpose of ReviewPatterns of sexualized drug use, including stimulants (e.g., methamphetamine) and chemsex drugs, are key drivers of HIV incidence among sexual minority men (SMM). Although pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) mitigates HIV risk, there is no consensus regarding the associations of substance use with the PrEP care continuum.Recent FindingsSMM who use substances are as likely or more likely to use PrEP. Although SMM who use stimulants experience greater difficulties with daily oral PrEP adherence, some evidence shows that SMM who use stimulants or chemsex drugs may achieve better adherence in the context o...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - August 1, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Examining the Use of HIV Self-Testing to Support PrEP Delivery: a Systematic Literature Review
AbstractPurpose of ReviewHIV self-testing (HIVST) has the potential to expand access to and uptake of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) delivery. We conducted a systematic literature review to understand the evidence on HIVST use for PrEP delivery.Recent FindingsAfter screening 1055 records, we included eight: three randomized trials and five values and preferences studies. None measured PrEP initiation. Most studies occurred in Sub-Saharan Africa (7/8) and included different populations. One trial found that HIVST use between quarterly clinic visits as part of an adherence package with biofeedback slightly increased adh...
Source: Current HIV/AIDS Reports - July 29, 2022 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
