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Ernest R, Lema N, Yassin S, Joachim A, Majigo M. Bacterial aetiology, antimicrobial susceptibility patterns, and factors associated with urinary tract infection among under-five children at primary health facility, North-Western Tanzania. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0303369. [PMID: 38709815 PMCID: PMC11073726 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0303369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Urinary tract infections (UTI) are common in under-five children, with significant consequences leading to bacteremia, dehydration, kidney scarring, and renal failure. The incidence of UTI varies with patients' demographics and geographic location. Limited studies have addressed UTI issues, particularly in children. We determined the proportion of UTI, bacterial aetiology, and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and associated factors among under-five children at the district hospital between March and April 2023. METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional study using a convenient non-probability sampling technique to collect urine samples from participants with signs and symptoms of UTI. Written informed consent was obtained from parents or guardians. We collected Participants' information using a pretested structured questionnaire. Urine samples were processed at the Regional Referral Hospital. All analyses were conducted using STATA version 15.0. We determined the factors associated with UTI using a modified Poisson model multivariable analysis of the modified Poisson model. The results were presented as a prevalence ratio and 95% confidence interval. The level of significance was specified at 0.05. RESULT The study recruited 368 under-five children; 194 (52.7%) were males, and the median age (interquartile range) was 24 (13-36) months. Of all, 28.8% (95% CI-24.3-33.6) had culture-confirmed UTI. One hundred and six pathogens were isolated, the majority being Escherichia coli (E. coli), 37 (34.9%), and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), 26 (24.5%). The susceptibility of E. coli to cefepime, piperacillin-tazobactam, nitrofurantoin, and meropenem ranged from 81.1% to 97.3%. S. aureus was most susceptible to nitrofurantoin (96.2%) and ciprofloxacin (92.3%). Multidrug resistance was observed in 33.0% of isolates. The proportion of Methicillin-resistant S. aureus and extended-spectrum beta-lactamases was 23.1% and 25%, respectively. UTI was observed more in patients presenting with vomiting, dysuria, and abdominal pain, patients below 24 months of age, nappy users, and uncircumcised males. CONCLUSION Our study found a relatively high proportion of UTI among under-five children associated with vomiting, dysuria, abdominal pain, nappy use, and uncircumcision in males. The pathogens were least susceptible to (trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, gentamycin, ampicillin, and penicillin) the commonly used antibiotic. We advocate a thorough clinical analysis to detect the predictors of UTI and a periodic review of empirical treatment of UTI based on the antibiotic susceptibility pattern.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roza Ernest
- Tanzania Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Nsiande Lema
- Tanzania Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Sued Yassin
- Research, Training, and Consultancy Unit, Chato Zonal Referral Hospital, Geita, Tanzania
| | - Agricola Joachim
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Mtebe Majigo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
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Mokhele I, Sineke T, Vujovic M, Ruiter RAC, Miot J, Onoya D. Improving patient-centred counselling skills among lay healthcare workers in South Africa using the Thusa-Thuso motivational interviewing training and support program. PLOS Glob Public Health 2024; 4:e0002611. [PMID: 38656958 PMCID: PMC11042703 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2023] [Accepted: 03/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
We developed a motivational interviewing (MI) counselling training and support program for lay counsellors in South Africa-branded "Thusa-Thuso-helping you help", commonly referred to as Thusa-Thuso. We present the results of a pilot study to determine the program's impact on MI technical skills and qualitatively assess the feasibility of a training-of-trainers (TOT) scale-up strategy among counselling staff of non-governmental (NGO) support partners of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) treatment program in South Africa. We enrolled adult (≥ 18 years) lay counsellors from ten primary healthcare clinics in Johannesburg (South Africa) selected to participate in the Thusa-Thuso training and support program. Counsellors attended the ten-day baseline and quarterly refresher training over 12 months (October 2018-October 2019). Each counsellor submitted two audio recordings of mock counselling sessions held during the ten-day baseline training and two additional recordings of sessions with consenting patients after each quarterly contact session. We reviewed the recordings using the MI treatment integrity (MITI) coding system to determine MI technical (cultivating change talk and softening sustain talk) and relational (empathy and partnership) competency scores before and after training. After 12 months of support with pilot site counsellors, we were asked to scale up the training to NGO partner team trainers in a once-off five-day Training of trainers (TOT) format (n = 127 trainees from November 2020 to January 2021). We report TOT training experiences from focus group discussions (n = 42) conducted six months after the TOT sessions. Of the 25 enrolled lay counsellors from participating facilities, 10 completed the 12-month Thusa-Thuso program. Attrition over the 12 months was caused by death (n = 3), site exclusion/resignations (n = 10), and absence (n = 2). MI competencies improved as follows: the technical skills score increased from a mean of 2.5 (standard deviation (SD): 0.8) to 3.1 (SD: 0.5), with a mean difference of 0.6 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.04, 0.9). The MI relational skills score improved from a mean of 3.20 (SD: 0.7) to 3.5 (SD: 0.6), with a mean difference of 0.3 (95% CI: -0.3, 8.5). End-point qualitative data from the counsellors highlighted the value of identifying and addressing specific skill deficiencies and the importance of counsellors being able to self-monitor skill development using the MITI review process. Participants appreciated the ongoing support to clarify practical MI applications. The TOT program tools were valuable for ongoing on-the-job development and monitoring of quality counselling skills. However, the MITI review process was perceived to be too involved for large-scale application and was adapted into a scoring form to document sit-in mentoring sessions. The Thusa-Thuso MI intervention can improve counsellor motivation and skills over time. In addition, the program can be scaled up using an adapted TOT process supplemented with fidelity assessment tools, which are valuable for skills development and ongoing maintenance. However, further studies are needed to determine the effect of the Thusa-Thuso program on patient ART adherence and retention in care. Trial registration: Pan African Clinical Trials Registry No: PACTR202212796722256 (12 December 2022).
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Affiliation(s)
- Idah Mokhele
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Tembeka Sineke
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Robert A. C. Ruiter
- Department of Work and Social Psychology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Jacqui Miot
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Dorina Onoya
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
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Mapaona R, Williams V, Musarapasi N, Kibwana S, Maseko T, Chekenyere R, Gumbo S, Mdluli P, Byarugaba H, Galagedera D, Mafukidze A, Hurtado-de-Mendoza A, Adsul P, Bongomin P, Loffredo C, Dlamini X, Bazira D, Ojoo S, Haumba S. Cervical cancer screening outcomes for HIV-positive women in the Lubombo and Manzini regions of Eswatini-Prevalence and predictors of a positive visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) screen. PLOS Glob Public Health 2024; 4:e0002760. [PMID: 38625931 PMCID: PMC11020862 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 04/18/2024]
Abstract
This study aimed to describe the prevalence and predictors of a positive VIA (visual inspection with acetic acid) cervical cancer screening test in women living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). We retrospectively analysed data from women aged ≥15 who accessed VIA screening from health facilities in the Lubombo and Manzini regions of Eswatini. Sociodemographic and clinical data from October 2020 to June 2023 were extracted from the client management information system (CMIS). VIA screening outcome was categorised into negative, positive, or suspicious. A logistic regression model estimated the adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of the predictors of a positive VIA screen at p<0.05 with 95% confidence intervals. Of 23,657 participants, 60.8% (n = 14,397) were from the Manzini region. The mean age was 33.3 years (standard deviation 7.0), and 33% (n = 7,714) were first-time screens. The prevalence of a positive VIA was 2.6% (95% CI: 2.2%, 3.0%): 2.8% (95% CI: 2.2%, 3.5%) in Lubombo and 2.4% (95% CI: 2.0%, 2.9%) in Manzini (p = 0.096). Screening at mission-owned (AOR 1.40; p = 0.001), NGO-owned (AOR 3.08; p<0.001) and industrial/workplace-owned health facilities (AOR 2.37; p = 0.044) were associated with increased odds of a positive VIA compared to government-owned health facilities. Compared to those aged 25-34, the odds of a positive VIA increased by 1.26 for those in the 35-44 age group (AOR 1.26; p = 0.017). Predictors with lower odds for a positive VIA test were: being on anti-retroviral therapy (ART) for 5-9 years (AOR 0.76; p = 0.004) and ≥10 years (AOR 0.66; p = 0.002) compared to <5 years; and having an undetectable viral load (AOR 0.39; p<0.001) compared to unsuppressed. Longer duration on ART and an undetectable viral load reduced the odds, while middle-aged women and screening at non-public health facilities increased the odds of a positive VIA screen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rufaro Mapaona
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Victor Williams
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
- Julius Global Health, Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Normusa Musarapasi
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Sharon Kibwana
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Thokozani Maseko
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Rhinos Chekenyere
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Sidumo Gumbo
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Phetsile Mdluli
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Hugben Byarugaba
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Dileepa Galagedera
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Arnold Mafukidze
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | | | - Prajakta Adsul
- University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States of America
| | - Pido Bongomin
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Christopher Loffredo
- Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Xolisile Dlamini
- National Cancer Control Program, Ministry of Health, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Deus Bazira
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Sylvia Ojoo
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Samson Haumba
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University, Mbabane, Eswatini
- Center for Global Health Practice and Impact, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, United States of America
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Manisha H, Moshiro C, Hussein A, Amani F, Mshiu J, Shabbar J, Mfinanga S. Health insurance financing and patient retention in care at diabetics and hypertension clinics in Dar es Salaam and Pwani regions, Tanzania. A cohort study. PLOS Glob Public Health 2024; 4:e0002972. [PMID: 38451978 PMCID: PMC10919617 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024]
Abstract
Hypertension and diabetes are chronic conditions that cause major morbidity and mortality worldwide. Whether health insurance financing is associated with improved retention in chronic care in Tanzania, is unknown. Our study establishes the effect of health insurance on retention and the determinants for retention in care among patients attending diabetes and hypertension clinics. We used a Cohort design to study participants enrolled in a cluster-randomized trial of integrated management of HIV, diabetes, and hypertension compared with standard vertical care in the INTE-AFRICA trial. Fifteen health facilities in Dar es Salam and Pwani regions were enrolled, with 1716 participants. Our sample size had 95% power to detect a 50% to 60% retention difference between the insured and uninsured groups (95% CI). We compared proportions using χ2 tests and obtained prevalence and rate ratios by Generalised Linear Models. We studied 1716 participants for 1612.3 Person-years (PY). At the study's end, 1351 persons were alive and retained in care. Among the insured participants (26.0%), females accounted for 65.9%. Middle-aged adults contributed 58.8% of insured participants. We observed high retention rates (retention incidence rate IR: 83.80/100 PY; 95% CI (79.40-88.40)). There was no difference in retention among insured and uninsured patients (adjusted rate ratio aRR: 1.00; 95% CI, 0.94-1.06). Being middle-aged or senior-aged adults compared to young adults, having diabetes alone or hypertension alone compared to both conditions, having the comorbidity of diabetes or hypertension with HIV compared to a single condition, and attending health centres and hospitals compared to dispensaries were significantly associated with retention in care. This study showed no effect of health insurance on retention in diabetic and hypertension care clinics. However, age, medical diagnosis, morbidity, and type of health facility attended were associated with retention in care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harrieth Manisha
- National Institute for Medical Research, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Tanzania Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Candida Moshiro
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Ally Hussein
- Tanzania Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Fredrick Amani
- National Institute for Medical Research, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Johnson Mshiu
- National Institute for Medical Research, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | | | - Sayoki Mfinanga
- National Institute for Medical Research, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Tanzania Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- UCL Institute for Global Health, London, United Kingdom
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Davis M, Musuka G, Mapingure MP, Hakim A, Parmley LE, Mugurungi O, Chingombe I, Miller SS, Rogers JH, Lamb MR, Samba C, Harris TG. Factors Associated with Having both Male and Female Recent Sexual Partnerships Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Harare and Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. AIDS Behav 2024; 28:728-740. [PMID: 38236320 PMCID: PMC10876709 DOI: 10.1007/s10461-023-04262-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2024]
Abstract
To better understand male and female sexual partnerships among men who have sex with men (MSM), we used data from a 2019 biobehavioral survey among MSM in Harare and Bulawayo, Zimbabwe to conduct bivariate analyses and multivariable logistic regression to determine whether sociodemographic characteristics and HIV-related factors were associated with having both male and female sexual partnerships within the last 6 months. Of included MSM (N = 1143), 31% reported both male and female partnerships in the last 6 months. Being married/cohabiting (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 8.58, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 4.92-14.95) or separated/divorced/widowed (aOR = 1.96, 95% CI = 1.24-3.08) vs. being single, and hazardous alcohol consumption (aOR = 1.58, 95% CI 1.19-2.09) were associated with higher odds of having both male and female recent partnerships. Being aged 35 + vs. 18-24 (aOR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.31-0.81), condomless receptive anal intercourse at last sex with the main male partner (aOR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.26-0.74), and positive HIV status (aOR = 0.46, 95% CI = 0.31-0.67) were associated with lower odds of recent male and female partnerships. MSM in Harare who reported harassment/abuse (aOR = 3.16, 95% CI = 1.72-5.79) had higher odds of both male and female partnerships than MSM in Bulawayo reporting harassment/abuse. The prevalence of both male and female recent partnerships (31%) was lower among MSM in this survey than in other biobehavioral surveys of MSM in sub-Saharan Africa. Findings suggest that MSM with recent male and female partnerships compared to MSM with only male recent partners have lower odds of positive HIV status and participate in behaviors that lower HIV risk; however, the direction of these relationships cannot be determined due to the cross-sectional nature of the data. The findings also suggest a possible connection between experiences of stigma of MSM behavior and not having both male and female partnerships that warrants further exploration. Accessible, stigma-free HIV testing and education programming that considers the potential overlap between the MSM and general populations via both male and female partnerships and the associated behaviors could be a key component of HIV elimination in Zimbabwe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morgan Davis
- Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
| | | | | | - Avi Hakim
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | | | - Owen Mugurungi
- AIDS and TB Programme, Zimbabwe Ministry of Health and Child Care, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | | | | | - John H Rogers
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Matthew R Lamb
- Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- ICAP at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Tiffany G Harris
- Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- ICAP at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
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Wong CM, Munthali T, Mangunje FG, Katoka ML, Burke HM, Musonda B, Musonda M, Todd CS. Creating allies: qualitative exploration of young women's preferences for PrEP methods and parents' role in PrEP uptake and user support in urban and rural Zambia. BMC Womens Health 2024; 24:71. [PMID: 38273282 PMCID: PMC10809647 DOI: 10.1186/s12905-024-02913-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Zambian adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) have high HIV incidence and face barriers to the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Parental support improves PrEP use and adherence in some settings, but negative parental attitudes toward HIV prevention may inhibit engagement with AGYW. We explored perceptions of future PrEP methods among AGYW and parents and parent-youth engagement on HIV prevention and PrEP use. METHODS We conducted a qualitative descriptive study among AGYW and parents of AGYW in five provinces in Zambia in September-October 2021. We conducted 10 focus group discussions (FGDs) and four in-depth interviews (IDIs) with AGYW participants (n = 87) and seven FGDs and four IDIs among parents of AGYW (n = 62). All FGDs and IDIs were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed to identify qualitative themes. RESULTS Most AGYW participants preferred the discreet nature and longer duration of injectable PrEP compared to the PrEP ring and oral PrEP. Many AGYWs reported inability to disclose PrEP use to their parents due to lack of parental support based on cultural taboos against premarital sex. Nevertheless, AGYW participants said they would like to talk to their parents about PrEP so their parents could support their use. Many parents also described difficulties discussing PrEP with their daughters because of cultural and religious beliefs about abstinence from sex before marriage. However, parents acknowledged that the threat of HIV is real and said they need PrEP knowledge and guidance on speaking with their children about HIV prevention and PrEP. CONCLUSIONS Although many parents are currently not playing a role in daughters' decisions about PrEP use, both parents and AGYW are willing to engage with each other on HIV prevention issues. To foster parent-child engagement, HIV prevention programs should not only provide information about PrEP but also address social norms that impede discussion of HIV prevention and equip both parents and AGYW with skills and support for such conversations. Community sensitization is also needed as new PrEP products are introduced, to create an enabling environment for parent-child engagement by increasing awareness, countering misconceptions, and reducing stigma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina Misa Wong
- Global Health & Population, FHI 360, 359 Blackwell Street, Suite 200, Durham, NC, 27701, USA.
| | - Tendai Munthali
- Ministry of Health, Government of the Republic of Zambia, Ndeke House, Haile Selassie Avenue, P.O. Box 30205, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Featherstone G Mangunje
- FHI 360 Zambia, Tiyende Pamodzi Road, Off Nangwenya Road, Farmers Village, Showgrounds Area, P.O. Box 320303, Lusaka, 10101, Zambia
| | - Mercy L Katoka
- FHI 360 Zambia, Tiyende Pamodzi Road, Off Nangwenya Road, Farmers Village, Showgrounds Area, P.O. Box 320303, Lusaka, 10101, Zambia
| | - Holly M Burke
- Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health, FHI 360, 359 Blackwell Street, Suite 200, Durham, NC, 27701, USA
| | - Bupe Musonda
- Ministry of Health, Government of the Republic of Zambia, Ndeke House, Haile Selassie Avenue, P.O. Box 30205, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Musonda Musonda
- United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Embassy of the United States of America, Subdivision 694/Stand 100 Ibex Hill Road, P.O. Box 320373, Lusaka, 10101, Zambia
| | - Catherine S Todd
- Global Health & Population, FHI 360, 359 Blackwell Street, Suite 200, Durham, NC, 27701, USA
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Simms V, Abas MA, Müller M, Munetsi E, Dzapasi L, Weiss HA, Chibanda D. Effect of a brief psychological intervention for common mental disorders on HIV viral suppression: A non-randomised controlled study of the Friendship Bench in Zimbabwe. PLOS Glob Public Health 2024; 4:e0001492. [PMID: 38236786 PMCID: PMC10796049 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/22/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND For people living with co-morbid HIV and common mental disorders (CMD), it is not known whether a brief psychological intervention for CMD can improve HIV viral suppression. METHODS We conducted a prospective cohort study in eight primary care clinics in Harare, Zimbabwe, enrolling adults with co-morbid HIV and CMD. Six clinics provided the Friendship Bench (FB), a brief psychological intervention for CMD based on problem-solving therapy, delivered by lay counsellors. Two clinics provided enhanced usual care (EUC). The primary outcome was viral non-suppression after six months (viral load ≥400 copies/mL). Data were analysed using a difference-in-difference approach with linear regression of cluster-level proportions, adjusted for baseline viral non-suppression (aDiD). The secondary outcome was presence of CMD measured by the Shona Symptom Questionnaire. RESULTS In FB clinics, 407/500 (81.4%) participants had viral load results at baseline and endline: 58 (14.3%) had viral non-suppression at baseline and 41 (10.1%) at endline. In EUC clinics, 172/200 (86.0%) had viral load results at baseline and endline: 22 (12.8%) were non-suppressed at baseline and 26 (15.1%) at endline (aDiD = -7.3%; 95%CI 14.7% to -0.01%; p = 0.05). Of the 499 participants virally suppressed at baseline, the FB group had lower prevalence of non-suppression at endline compared to the EUC group (2.9% vs 9.3%; p = 0.002). There was no evidence of a difference in endline viral non-suppression by group among the 80 participants with non-suppression at baseline (53.5% vs 54.6%; p = 0.93). The FB group was less likely to screen positive for CMD at endline than the EUC group (aDiD = -21.6%; 95%CI -36.5% to -6.7%; p = 0.008). CONCLUSION People living with co-morbid HIV and CMD may benefit from receiving a low-cost mental health intervention to enhance viral suppression, especially if they are already virally suppressed. Research is needed to understand if additional adherence counselling could further improve viral suppression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Simms
- MRC International Statistics and Epidemiology Group, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Melanie A. Abas
- Centre for Global Mental Health, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Monika Müller
- Centre for Global Mental Health, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
- University Hospital of Psychiatry Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Helen A. Weiss
- MRC International Statistics and Epidemiology Group, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Dixon Chibanda
- Friendship Bench, Harare, Zimbabwe
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe
- Centre For Global Mental Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
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Makonokaya L, Kapanda L, Maphosa T, Kalitera LU, Machekano R, Nkhoma H, Chamanga R, Zimba SB, Mwale AC, Maida A, Woelk G. Factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine receipt among mobile phone users in Malawi: Findings from a national mobile-based syndromic surveillance survey, July 2021-April 2022. PLOS Glob Public Health 2024; 4:e0002722. [PMID: 38206893 PMCID: PMC10783752 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2022] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
Malawi recommended COVID-19 vaccines for adults aged ≥18 years in March 2021. We assessed factors associated with receiving COVID-19 vaccines in Malawi as part of a telephone-based syndromic surveillance survey. We conducted telephone-based syndromic surveillance surveys with questions on COVID-19 vaccine receipt among adults (≥18 years old) upon verbal consent from July 2021 to April 2022. We used random digit dialing to select mobile phone numbers and employed electronic data collection forms on secure tablets. Survey questions included whether the respondent had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. We used multivariable analysis to identify factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine receipt. Of the 51,577 participants enrolled; 65.7% were male. Males were less likely to receive the COVID-19 vaccine than females (AOR 0.83, 95% CI 0.80-0.86). Compared to those aged 18-24 years, older age had increased odds of vaccine receipt: 25-34 years (AOR 1.32, 95% CI 1.24-1.40), 35-44 years (AOR 2.00, 95% CI 1.88-2.13), 45-54 years (AOR 3.02, 95% CI 2.82-3.24), 55-64 years (AOR 3.24, 95% CI 2.93-3.57) and 65 years+ (AOR 3.98, 95% CI 3.52-4.49). Respondents without formal education were less likely to receive vaccination compared to those with primary (AOR 1.30, 95% CI 1.14-1.48), secondary (AOR 1.76, 95% CI 1.55-2.01), and tertiary (AOR 3.37, 95% CI 2.95-3.86) education. Respondents who thought COVID-19 vaccines were unsafe were less likely to receive vaccination than those who thought it was very safe (AOR 0.26, 95% CI 0.25-0.28). Residents of the Central and Southern regions had reduced odds of vaccine receipt compared to those in the North (AORs 0.79, (95% CI 0.74-0.84) and 0.55, (95% CI 0.52-0.58) respectively). Radio (72.6%), health facilities (52.1%), and social media (16.0%) were the more common self-reported sources of COVID-19 vaccine information. COVID-19 vaccine receipt is associated with gender, age, education, and residence. It is important to consider these factors when implementing COVID-19 vaccination programs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lester Kapanda
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Thulani Maphosa
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | | | - Rhoderick Machekano
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Harrid Nkhoma
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Rachel Chamanga
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Suzgo B. Zimba
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | | | - Alice Maida
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Godfrey Woelk
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Washington, DC, United States of America
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Onwah O, Nwanja E, Akpan U, Toyo O, Nwangeneh C, Oyawola B, Idemudia A, Olatunbosun K, Igboelina O, Ogundehin D, James E, Onyedinachi O, Adegboye A, Eyo A. Prevalence and predictors of persistent low-level HIV viraemia: a retrospective cohort study among people receiving dolutegravir-based antiretroviral therapy in Southern Nigeria. Ther Adv Infect Dis 2024; 11:20499361241242240. [PMID: 38572299 PMCID: PMC10989043 DOI: 10.1177/20499361241242240] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Persistent low-level viraemia (PLLV) is a risk factor for virologic failure among people receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART). Objectives We assessed the prevalence and predictors of PLLV among individuals receiving Dolutegravir-based ART in southern Nigeria. Design This retrospective cohort study used routine program data from electronic medical records of persons receiving Dolutegravir-based first-line ART in 154 PEPFAR/USAID-supported health facilities in Akwa Ibom and Cross Rivers states, Nigeria. Methods Clients on first-line Dolutegravir-based ART ⩾6 months, who had a viral load result in the 12 months preceding October 2021 (baseline), and a second viral load result by September 2022 were included. Persons with low-level viraemia (LLV) (viral load 51-999 copies/ml) received additional adherence support. The outcome analysed was PLLV (two consecutive LLV results). Indices were summarized using descriptive statistics, and predictors of PLLV were determined using multivariate logistic regression. Results In total, 141,208 persons on ART were included, of which 63.3% (n = 89,944) were females. The median age was 36 [29-44] years, median ART duration was 19 [11-42] months. At the end of the study, 10.5% (14,759/141,208) had initial LLV, 90.1% (13,304/14,759) of which attained undetectable viral load (⩽50 copies/ml), and 1.1% (163/14,759) transitioned to virologic failure (⩾1000 copies/ml) by the end of the study. PLLV prevalence was 0.9% (1292/141,208). Increasing ART duration [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 1.0; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.005-1.008; p < 0.001] and viral suppression (<1000 copies/ml) before initial LLV (aOR = 1.7; 95% CI: 1.50-2.00; p < 0.001) were positively associated with PLLV, while receipt of tuberculosis preventive therapy reduced the likelihood of PLLV (aOR = 0.3; 95% CI: 0.10-0.94; p = 0.039). Conclusion PLLV was uncommon among individuals receiving dolutegravir-based ART and was associated with longer ART duration, prior viral suppression, and non-receipt of tuberculosis preventive therapy. This strengthens recommendations for continuous adherence support and comprehensive health services with ART, to prevent treatment failure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ogheneuzuazo Onwah
- Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme, 14 Ubium Street, Ewet Housing Estate, Uyo, Akwa Ibom, Nigeria
| | - Esther Nwanja
- Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme, Uyo, Nigeria
| | - Uduak Akpan
- Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme, Uyo, Nigeria
| | - Otoyo Toyo
- Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme, Uyo, Nigeria
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Andy Eyo
- Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme, Uyo, Nigeria
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10
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Barrington C, Davis DA, Angeles G, Pajarito Rompich AY, Santa Luce R, Shelus V, Northbrook S. HIV Treatment and Mental Health Outcomes Among Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men Living With HIV in a Pilot Multicomponent Intervention in Guatemala City. Health Educ Behav 2023; 50:758-769. [PMID: 37088978 PMCID: PMC10638854 DOI: 10.1177/10901981231164598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/25/2023]
Abstract
Globally, gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) are disproportionately affected by HIV, but few interventions address mental health and HIV outcomes among GBMSM living with HIV. The purpose of this study was to pilot a multicomponent intervention, integrating emotional well-being (EW) and health navigation for GBMSM living with HIV in Guatemala City. We implemented a 12-month intervention, including a four-session EW component and a health navigation component among newly diagnosed and reengaged GBMSM with HIV (n = 112). We conducted socio-behavioral surveys at baseline and endline to measure patient characteristics and HIV, and mental health outcomes as well as viral load testing. We documented participation in EW sessions and used a smartphone application to track navigation mode, frequency, and content. Using first-difference estimation modeling, we assessed associations between participation in EW and navigation and mental health (depression and anxiety symptoms) and HIV outcomes (HIV treatment adherence, viral suppression). Acceptability was high for EW (86%) and navigation (99%). During the intervention, viral suppression increased significantly and anxiety and depression decreased significantly. Participation in EW sessions and greater navigation frequency and duration were associated with being suppressed, whereas higher emotional navigator support was associated with being unsuppressed. Participation in EW sessions was associated with reduced anxiety. Findings suggest that multicomponent interventions integrating individual counseling and navigation may promote EW and sustained viral suppression. Future intervention research is needed to confirm whether HIV and mental health outcomes are attributable to the intervention and to assess mechanisms of influence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clare Barrington
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | | | - Gustavo Angeles
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | | | | | - Victoria Shelus
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Sanny Northbrook
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nonthaburi, Thailand
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11
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Shrivastava R, Stevens T, Westerman L, Bressler D, van Schalkwyk E, Bressler C, Ugwu K, Mwangi C, Opio JP, Nkodyo J, Mwangi JW, Martin MD, Nesby-O'Dell S. Measuring training effectiveness of laboratory biosafety program offered at African Center for Integrated Laboratory Training in 22 President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief supported countries (2008-2014). Trop Med Health 2023; 51:65. [PMID: 37990251 PMCID: PMC10662895 DOI: 10.1186/s41182-023-00557-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 11/23/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION The African Center for Integrated Laboratory Training (ACILT) in Johannesburg, South Africa offered a laboratory biosafety program to improve laboratory biosafety practices in 22 President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) supported countries. This manuscript evaluates the transference of newly gained knowledge and skills to the participants' place of employment for HIV and TB diagnostic laboratory programs. It also serves as a follow-on to a previously published manuscript that measured training effectiveness for all courses offered at ACILT. METHODS ACILT offered 20 Laboratory Biosafety and Infrastructure courses (2008-2014), also referred as biosafety course/course comprising of 14 core laboratory safety elements to 402 participants from 22 countries. In 2015, participants received 22 e-questions divided into four categories: (1) Safety Policies, (2) Management's Engagement, (3) Safety Programs and (4) Assessments of Safety Practices to determine retrospectively the training effectiveness of biosafety practices in their place of employment 6 months before and after attending their course. We used Kirkpatrick model to assess the transference of knowledge, skills and obstructive factors. RESULTS 20% (81/402) of the participants completed the e-questionnaire. The overall percentage of positive responses indicating implementation of new safety practices increased from 50% to 84%. Improvement occurred in all four categories after attending the course, with the greatest increases in Safety Policies (67-94%) and Safety Programs (43-91%). Creating a safety committee, allocating resources, and establishing a facility safety policy were important drivers for implementing and maintaining laboratory safety practices. In addition, accredited laboratories and countries with national safety regulations or policies had a higher percentage of improvements. The most reported challenges were inadequate funding and lack of management enforcement. CONCLUSIONS PEPFAR and other partners' investments in training institutions, such as ACILT, were effective in building sustainable country ownership to strengthen biosafety practices and were leveraged to combat zoonotic diseases and COVID-19. Although support continues at the national/regional level, a standardized, coordinated and continent-wide sustainable approach to offer a biosafety program-like ACILT is missing. Continuous offerings of biosafety programs similar to ACILT could contribute to sustainable strengthening of laboratory biosafety, QMS and pandemic preparedness.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Thomas Stevens
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Lusaka, Zambia
| | | | - David Bressler
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, USA
| | - Elsie van Schalkwyk
- African Center for Integrated Laboratory Training, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Ken Ugwu
- Government of Canada, Ottawa, Canada
| | | | | | | | - Jane W Mwangi
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Monte D Martin
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, USA
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12
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Shen Y, Franks J, Reidy W, Olsen H, Wang C, Mushimbele N, Mazala RT, Tchissambou T, Malele F, Kilundu A, Bingham T, Djomand G, Mukinda E, Ewetola R, Abrams EJ, Teasdale CA. Pre-exposure prophylaxis uptake concerns in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Key population and healthcare workers perspectives. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0280977. [PMID: 37917646 PMCID: PMC10621847 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0280977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 10/16/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Key populations (KP) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), including female sex workers (SW), are disproportionally affected by HIV. Quantitative feedback surveys were conducted at seven health facilities in DRC with 70 KP clients enrolled in pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) services to measure benefits and concerns. The surveys also assessed satisfaction with PrEP services and experiences of stigma at the health facilities. Thirty healthcare workers (HCW) were surveyed to measure attitudes, beliefs, and acceptability of providing services to KP. KP client survey participants were primarily female SW. KP clients reported that the primary concern about taking PrEP was fear of side effects (67%) although few KP reported having experienced side effect (14%). HCW concurred with clients that experienced and anticipated side effects were a primary PrEP uptake concern, along with costs of clinic visits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanhan Shen
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, New York, NY, United States of America
- Institute for Implementation Science in Population Health, CUNY SPH, New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Julie Franks
- ICAP at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
| | - William Reidy
- ICAP at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Halli Olsen
- ICAP at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Chunhui Wang
- ICAP at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Trista Bingham
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Gaston Djomand
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Elie Mukinda
- Democratic Republic of the Congo Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Kinshasa, DRC
| | - Raimi Ewetola
- Democratic Republic of the Congo Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Kinshasa, DRC
| | - Elaine J. Abrams
- ICAP at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Chloe A. Teasdale
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, New York, NY, United States of America
- Institute for Implementation Science in Population Health, CUNY SPH, New York, NY, United States of America
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, United States of America
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13
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Sisimayi T, Nhamo D, Chatora K, Chapwanya G, Mawoyo T, Ncube G, Bruns C, Harris EL, Shelley KD. Early implementation learnings on acceptability and feasibility of "V": a multi-level PrEP intervention designed with and for adolescent girls and young women in Zimbabwe. Health Res Policy Syst 2023; 21:101. [PMID: 37784195 PMCID: PMC10546763 DOI: 10.1186/s12961-023-01040-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) remain disproportionately affected by HIV in Zimbabwe. Several HIV prevention options are available, including oral tenofovir-based pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), however AGYW face unique barriers to PrEP uptake and continuation and novel approaches are therefore needed to empower AGYW to use PrEP. The objective of this study was to characterize early learnings from implementing a multi-level intervention consisting of fashionable branding (including a "V Starter Kit"), service integration, and peer education and support throughout a young woman's journey using oral PrEP across four phases of implementation, from creating demand, preparing for PrEP, initiation of PrEP, and adherence to PrEP. METHODS A mixed methods implementation research study was undertaken, including site observations and interviews to explore the acceptability of "V" and its relevance to target users, as well as the feasibility of integrating "V" with existing service delivery models. Interviews (n = 46) were conducted with healthcare workers, Brand Ambassadors, and young women purposively sampled from four implementation sites. Interview data was analyzed thematically using the framework method for qualitative data management and analysis. Project budgets and invoices were used to compile unit cost and procurement data for all "V" materials. RESULTS "V" was acceptable to providers and young women due to attractive branding coupled with factual and thought-provoking messaging, establishing "a girl code" for discussing PrEP, and addressing a gap in communications materials. "V" was also feasible to integrate into routine service provision and outreach, alongside other services targeting AGYW. Cost for the "V" branded materials ranked most essential-FAQ insert, pill case, makeup bag, reminder sticker-were $7.61 per AGYW initiated on PrEP. CONCLUSION "V" is a novel approach that is an acceptable and feasible multi-level intervention to improve PrEP access, uptake, and continuation among AGYW, which works through empowering AGYW to take control of their HIV prevention needs. In considering "V" for scale up in Zimbabwe, higher volume procurement and a customized lighter package of "V" materials, while still retaining V's core approach, should be explored.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Definate Nhamo
- Pangaea Zimbabwe AIDS Trust (PZAT), 27 Rowland Square, Milton Park, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Kumbirai Chatora
- Population Services International (PSI), 45 Piers Road, Sam Levy's Village Block C, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Gwendoline Chapwanya
- Pangaea Zimbabwe AIDS Trust (PZAT), 27 Rowland Square, Milton Park, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Tinovonga Mawoyo
- Population Services International (PSI), 45 Piers Road, Sam Levy's Village Block C, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Getrude Ncube
- Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC), 4th Floor Kaguvi Building, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Cal Bruns
- Matchboxology, 70, 7th Avenue, Parktown North, Johannesburg, 2193, South Africa
| | - Emily L Harris
- United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Office of HIV/AIDS, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Katharine D Shelley
- PATH, Primary Health Care, 2201 Westlake Ave Suite 200, Seattle, WA, 98121, USA
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Kikoyo L, Exavery A, Charles J, Temu A, Barankena A, Ally A, Mseya R, Mbwambo T, Fovo R, Tarimo A, Mubyazi GM, Balampama M, Kuhlik E, Ventimiglia T, Lema E. Factors affecting caregivers' participation in support groups for people living with HIV in Tanzania. Front Public Health 2023; 11:1215219. [PMID: 37780441 PMCID: PMC10540687 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1215219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Support groups for people living with HIV (PLHIV) are essential for increasing adherence, retention, addressing their psychosocial needs and improving patient literacy. However, factors that influence participation of caregivers living with HIV (LHIV) in these groups are scarcely documented, particularly for those caring for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC). Methods This study used baseline data collected between 1st October 2021 and 30th September 2022 from the PEPFAR/USAID-funded Adolescents and Children HIV Incidence Reduction, Empowerment and Virus Elimination (ACHIEVE) project in Tanzania to investigate factors that affect participation of caregivers LHIV in support groups for PLHIV. A total of 74,249 HIV-positive OVC caregivers who were already receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) and had a confirmed care and treatment centre identification number were included in the analysis. Factors affecting group participation were identified through multilevel analysis using multivariable mixed-effects logistic regression. Results Results showed that 84.2% of the caregivers were participants in the support groups for PLHIV. Their mean age was 36 years, and the majority (82.1%) were female. Multivariable analysis revealed that participation in the groups was more likely among caregivers living in urban areas (aOR = 1.39 [1.24, 1.55]), with primary education (aOR = 1.17 [1.07, 1.28]), and without disabilities (aOR = 0.62 [0.47, 0.82]). However, participation was less likely among widowed (aOR = 0.91 [0.84, 0.999]), single or unmarried (aOR = 0.86 [0.78, 0.95]), and those with secondary education or higher levels than never attended (aOR = 0.69 [0.60, 0.80]), moderate hunger (aOR = 0.86 [0.79, 0.93]), and those aged 30 years or older (p< 0.001). Discussion A sizeable proportion (15.8%) of the caregivers were not in support groups for PLHIV, ranging from 12.3% among those in households with severe hunger to 29.7% among disabled ones. The study highlights the need for tailored interventions to increase participation in support groups for PLHIV, particularly for caregivers who are disabled, live in rural areas, are older, widowed, and/or unmarried, and those in poor households.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Amal Ally
- Pact Tanzania, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | | | | | - Rose Fovo
- Pact Tanzania, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
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15
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Klinkenberg E, Floyd S, Shanaube K, Mureithi L, Gachie T, de Haas P, Kosloff B, Dodd PJ, Ruperez M, Wapamesa C, Burnett JM, Kalisvaart N, Kasese N, Vermaak R, Schaap A, Fidler S, Hayes R, Ayles H. Tuberculosis prevalence after 4 years of population-wide systematic TB symptom screening and universal testing and treatment for HIV in the HPTN 071 (PopART) community-randomised trial in Zambia and South Africa: A cross-sectional survey (TREATS). PLoS Med 2023; 20:e1004278. [PMID: 37682971 PMCID: PMC10490889 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1004278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Tuberculosis (TB) prevalence remains persistently high in many settings, with new or expanded interventions required to achieve substantial reductions. The HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 071 (PopART) community-randomised trial randomised 14 communities to receive the "PopART" intervention during 2014 to 2017 (7 arm A and 7 arm B communities) and 7 communities to receive standard-of-care (arm C). The intervention was delivered door-to-door by community HIV care providers (CHiPs) and included universal HIV testing, facilitated linkage to HIV care at government health clinics, and systematic TB symptom screening. The Tuberculosis Reduction through Expanded Anti-retroviral Treatment and Screening (TREATS) study aimed to measure the impact of delivering the PopART intervention on TB outcomes, in communities with high HIV and TB prevalence. METHODS AND FINDINGS The study population of the HPTN 071 (PopART) trial included individuals aged ≥15 years living in 21 urban and peri-urban communities in Zambia and South Africa, with a total population of approximately 1 million and an adult HIV prevalence of around 15% at the time of the trial. Two sputum samples for TB testing were provided to CHiPs by individuals who reported ≥1 TB suggestive symptom (a cough for ≥2 weeks, unintentional weight loss ≥1.5 kg in the last month, or current night sweats) or that a household member was currently on TB treatment. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) was offered universally at clinics in arm A and according to local guidelines in arms B and C. The TREATS study was conducted in the same 21 communities as the HPTN 071 (PopART) trial between 2017 and 2022, and TB prevalence was a co-primary endpoint of the TREATS study. The primary comparison was between the PopART intervention (arms A and B combined) and the standard-of-care (arm C). During 2019 to 2021, a TB prevalence survey was conducted among randomly selected individuals aged ≥15 years (approximately 1,750 per community in arms A and B, approximately 3,500 in arm C). Participants were screened on TB symptoms and chest X-ray, with diagnostic testing using Xpert-Ultra followed by culture for individuals who screened positive. Sputum eligibility was determined by the presence of a cough for ≥2 weeks, or ≥2 of 5 "TB suggestive" symptoms (cough, weight loss for ≥4 weeks, night sweats, chest pain, and fever for ≥2 weeks), or chest X-ray CAD4TBv5 score ≥50, or no available X-ray results. TB prevalence was compared between trial arms using standard methods for cluster-randomised trials, with adjustment for age, sex, and HIV status, and multiple imputation was used for missing data on prevalent TB. Among 83,092 individuals who were eligible for the survey, 49,556 (59.6%) participated, 8,083 (16.3%) screened positive, 90.8% (7,336/8,083) provided 2 sputum samples for Xpert-Ultra testing, and 308 (4.2%) required culture confirmation. Overall, estimated TB prevalence was 0.92% (457/49,556). The geometric means of 7 community-level prevalence estimates were 0.91%, 0.70%, and 0.69% in arms A, B, and C, respectively, with no evidence of a difference comparing arms A and B combined with arm C (adjusted prevalence ratio 1.14, 95% confidence interval, CI [0.67, 1.95], p = 0.60). TB prevalence was higher among people living with HIV than HIV-negative individuals, with an age-sex-community adjusted odds ratio of 2.29 [95% CI 1.54, 3.41] in Zambian communities and 1.61 [95% CI 1.13, 2.30] in South African communities. The primary limitations are that the study was powered to detect only large reductions in TB prevalence in the intervention arm compared with standard-of-care, and the between-community variation in TB prevalence was larger than anticipated. CONCLUSIONS There was no evidence that the PopART intervention reduced TB prevalence. Systematic screening for TB that is based on symptom screening alone may not be sufficient to achieve a large reduction in TB prevalence over a period of several years. Including chest X-ray screening alongside TB symptom screening could substantially increase the sensitivity of systematic screening for TB. TRIAL REGISTRATION The TREATS study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03739736 on November 14, 2018. The HPTN 071 (PopART) trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under number NCT01900977 on July 17, 2013.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eveline Klinkenberg
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
- Department of Global Health and Amsterdam Institute for Global Health and Development, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
- KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, Hague, the Netherlands
| | - Sian Floyd
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
| | - Kwame Shanaube
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | | | - Thomas Gachie
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Petra de Haas
- KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, Hague, the Netherlands
| | - Barry Kosloff
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Peter J. Dodd
- School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Maria Ruperez
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
| | - Chali Wapamesa
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | | | | | - Nkatya Kasese
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | | | - Albertus Schaap
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Sarah Fidler
- HIV Clinical Trials Unit, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Richard Hayes
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
| | - Helen Ayles
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, United Kingdom
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
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16
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Fuente-Soro L, Figueroa-Romero A, Fernández-Luis S, Augusto O, López-Varela E, Bernardo E, Saura-Lázaro A, Vaz P, Wei SC, Kerndt PR, Nhampossa T, Naniche D. Reasons for non-disclosure of HIV-Positive status to healthcare providers: a mixed methods study in Mozambique. BMC Health Serv Res 2023; 23:925. [PMID: 37649011 PMCID: PMC10470171 DOI: 10.1186/s12913-023-09865-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Non-disclosure of known HIV status by people living with HIV but undergoing HIV testing leads to waste of HIV testing resources and distortion of estimates of HIV indicators. In Mozambique, an estimated one-third of persons who tested positive already knew their HIV-positive status. To our knowledge, this study is the first to assess the factors that prevent people living with HIV (PLHIV) from disclosing their HIV-positive status to healthcare providers during a provider-initiated counseling and testing (PICT) campaign. METHODS This analysis was nested in a larger PICT cross-sectional study performed in the Manhiça District, Southern Mozambique from January to July 2019, in which healthcare providers actively asked patients about their HIV-status. Patients who tested positive for HIV were crosschecked with the hospital database to identify those who had previously tested positive and were currently or previously enrolled in care. PLHIV who did not disclose their HIV-positive status were invited to participate and provide consent, and were interviewed using a questionnaire designed to explore barriers, patterns of community/family disclosure, and stigma and discrimination. RESULTS We found that 16.1% of participants who tested positive during a PICT session already knew their HIV-positive status but did not disclose it to the healthcare provider. All the participants reported previous mistreatment by general healthcare providers as a reason for nondisclosure during PICT. Other reasons included the desire to know if they were cured (33.3%) or to re-engage in care (23.5%). Among respondents, 83.9% reported having disclosed their HIV-status within their close community, 48.1% reported being victims of verbal or physical discrimination following their HIV diagnosis, and 46.7% reported that their HIV status affected their daily activities. CONCLUSION Previous mistreatment by healthcare workers was the main barrier to disclosing HIV-positive status. The high proportion of those disclosing their HIV status to their community but not to healthcare providers suggests that challenges with patient-provider relationships affect this care behavior rather than social stigma and discrimination. Improving patient-provider relationships could increase trust in healthcare providers, reduce non-disclosures, and help optimize resources and provide accurate estimates of the UNAIDS first 95 goal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Fuente-Soro
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic - Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigação Em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
| | | | - Sheila Fernández-Luis
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic - Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigação Em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Orvalho Augusto
- Centro de Investigação Em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Elisa López-Varela
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic - Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigação Em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Edson Bernardo
- Centro de Investigação Em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Anna Saura-Lázaro
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic - Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Paula Vaz
- Fundação Ariel Glazer Contra O SIDA Pediatrico, Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Stanley C. Wei
- U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Peter R. Kerndt
- U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Tacilta Nhampossa
- Centro de Investigação Em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
- Instituto Nacional de Saúde (INS), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Denise Naniche
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic - Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigação Em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
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Shanaube K, Schaap A, Mureithi L, Amofa-Sekyi M, Paulsen R, Cheeba M, Kangololo B, Vermaak R, Sisam C, Kosloff B, de Haas P, Fidler S, Ruperez M, Hayes R, Floyd S, Ayles H. The impact of a combined TB/HIV intervention on the incidence of TB infection among adolescents and young adults in the HPTN 071 (PopART) trial communities in Zambia and South Africa. PLOS Glob Public Health 2023; 3:e0001473. [PMID: 37450474 PMCID: PMC10348566 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND HPTN071 (PopART) was a cluster randomized trial conducted in Zambian and South African (SA) communities, between 2013-2018. The PopART intervention (universal HIV-testing and treatment (UTT) combined with population-level TB symptom screening) was implemented in 14 communities. The TREATS study (2017-2021) was conducted to evaluate the impact of the PopART intervention on TB outcomes. We report on the impact of the combined TB/HIV intervention on the incidence of TB infection in a cohort of adolescents and young adults (AYA) aged 15-24 years. METHODS A random sample of AYA was enrolled between July 2018 and July 2019 in 7 intervention vs 7 standard-of-care communities. We collected questionnaire data on risk factors for TB, and blood for measuring TB infection using QuantiFERON (QFT) Plus. AYA were seen at months 12 and 24 with all procedures repeated. Primary outcome was incidence of TB infection comparing intervention and standard-of-care communities. An incident case was defined as a participant with QFT interferon-gamma response of < 0.2 IU/ml plasma ('negative') at baseline and a QFT interferon-gamma response of > = 0.7 IU/ml ('positive') at follow up. RESULTS We enrolled 4,648 AYA, 2,223 (47.8%) had a negative QFT-plus result at baseline, 1,902 (85.6%) had a follow up blood sample taken at 12 months or 24 months. Among the 1,902 AYA, followed for 2,987 person-years, 213 had incident TB infection giving (7.1 per 100 person-years). TB infection incidence rates were 8.7 per 100 person-years in intervention communities compared to 6.0 per 100 person-years in standard-of-care communities. There was no evidence the intervention reduced the transmission of TB (incidence-rate-ratio of 1.45, 95%CI 0.97-2.15, p = 0.063). CONCLUSION In our trial setting, we found no evidence that UTT combined with TB active case finding reduced the incidence of TB infection at population level. Our data will inform future modelling work to better understand the population level dynamics of HIV and TB.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ab Schaap
- Zambart, Lusaka, Zambia
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Linda Mureithi
- Health Systems Trust, Health Systems Research Unit, Cape Town, South Africa
| | | | - Robynn Paulsen
- Health Systems Trust, Health Systems Research Unit, Cape Town, South Africa
| | | | | | - Redwaan Vermaak
- Health Systems Trust, Health Systems Research Unit, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Carmen Sisam
- Health Systems Trust, Health Systems Research Unit, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Barry Kosloff
- Zambart, Lusaka, Zambia
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Petra de Haas
- KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, The Hague, The Netherlands
| | - Sarah Fidler
- Department of Infectious Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, London, United Kingdom
| | - Maria Ruperez
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Richard Hayes
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sian Floyd
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Helen Ayles
- Zambart, Lusaka, Zambia
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
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18
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Larmarange J, Bachanas P, Skalland T, Balzer LB, Iwuji C, Floyd S, Mills LA, Pillay D, Havlir D, Kamya MR, Ayles H, Wirth K, Dabis F, Hayes R, Petersen M. Population-level viremia predicts HIV incidence at the community level across the Universal Testing and Treatment Trials in eastern and southern Africa. PLOS Glob Public Health 2023; 3:e0002157. [PMID: 37450436 PMCID: PMC10348573 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
Universal HIV testing and treatment (UTT) strategies aim to optimize population-level benefits of antiretroviral treatment. Between 2012 and 2018, four large community randomized trials were conducted in eastern and southern Africa. While their results were broadly consistent showing decreased population-level viremia reduces HIV incidence, it remains unclear how much HIV incidence can be reduced by increasing suppression among people living with HIV (PLHIV). We conducted a pooled analysis across the four UTT trials. Leveraging data from 105 communities in five countries, we evaluated the linear relationship between i) population-level viremia (prevalence of non-suppression-defined as plasma HIV RNA >500 or >400 copies/mL-among all adults, irrespective of HIV status) and HIV incidence; and ii) prevalence of non-suppression among PLHIV and HIV incidence, using parametric g-computation. HIV prevalence, measured in 257 929 persons, varied from 2 to 41% across the communities; prevalence of non-suppression among PLHIV, measured in 31 377 persons, from 3 to 70%; population-level viremia, derived from HIV prevalence and non-suppression, from < 1% to 25%; and HIV incidence, measured over 345 844 person-years (PY), from 0.03/100PY to 3.46/100PY. Decreases in population-level viremia were strongly associated with decreased HIV incidence in all trials (between 0.45/100PY and 1.88/100PY decline in HIV incidence per 10 percentage points decline in viremia). Decreases in non-suppression among PLHIV were also associated with decreased HIV incidence in all trials (between 0.06/100PY and 0.17/100PY decline in HIV incidence per 10 percentage points decline in non-suppression). Our results support both the utility of population-level viremia as a predictor of incidence, and thus a tool for targeting prevention interventions, and the ability of UTT approaches to reduce HIV incidence by increasing viral suppression. Implementation of universal HIV testing approaches, coupled with interventions to leverage linkage to treatment, adapted to local contexts, can reduce HIV acquisition at population level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph Larmarange
- Centre Population et Développement, Université Paris Cité, IRD, Inserm, Paris, France
| | - Pamela Bachanas
- Division of Global HIV/AIDS and TB, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Timothy Skalland
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, WA, United States of America
| | - Laura B. Balzer
- Division of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America
| | - Collins Iwuji
- Department of Global Health and Infection, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, University of Sussex, Falmer, United Kingdom
| | - Sian Floyd
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Lisa A. Mills
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Deenan Pillay
- Division of Infection & Immunity, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Diane Havlir
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | - Moses R. Kamya
- Department of Medicine, Makerere University Kampala, Uganda and the Infectious Diseases Research Collaboration, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Helen Ayles
- Clinical Research Department London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Kathleen Wirth
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, United States of America
| | - François Dabis
- Université Bordeaux, ISPED, Centre INSERM U1219-Bordeaux Population Health, Bordeaux, France
| | - Richard Hayes
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Maya Petersen
- Division of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, California, United States of America
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Steytler J, van der Ryst E, Craig C, Van Baelen B, Nuttall J, van Niekerk N, Mellors J, Parikh U, Wallis C. Clinical Presentation, Treatment Response, and Virology Outcomes of Women Who Seroconverted in the Dapivirine Vaginal Ring Trials-The Ring Study and DREAM. Clin Infect Dis 2023; 76:389-397. [PMID: 36189636 PMCID: PMC10169386 DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciac804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2022] [Revised: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Participants with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) seroconversion in The Ring Study, a phase 3 trial of dapivirine vaginal ring (DVR), or in the open-label extension trial dapivirine ring extended access and monitoring (DREAM) were offered enrollment in an observational cohort study (IPM 007) to assess clinical presentation and response to antiretroviral therapy (ART). METHODS Participants' HIV infection was managed at local treatment clinics according to national treatment guidelines. IPM 007 study visits occurred 3 and 6 months after enrollment and every 6 months thereafter. Assessments included plasma HIV-1 RNA, CD4+ T-cell counts, and recording of HIV/AIDS-associated events and antiretroviral use. Post hoc virology analyses were performed for participants identified with virologic failure. RESULTS One hundred fifty-one of 179 eligible participants (84.4%) enrolled into IPM 007; 103 had previously received the DVR in the Ring or DREAM studies, and 48 had received placebo in The Ring Study. HIV-1 RNA and CD4+ T-cell counts after 12 months' follow-up were similar for participants who used the DVR in The Ring Study and DREAM, compared to those who received placebo. Of the 78 participants with a study visit approximately 6 months after ART initiation, 59 (75.6%) had HIV-1 RNA <40 copies/mL (The Ring Study: placebo: 13/23 [56.5%]; DVR: 32/39 [82.1%]; DREAM [DVR]: 14/16 [87.5%]). Post hoc virology analysis indicated that genotypic patterns observed at virologic failure were as expected of a nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)-based regimen. CONCLUSIONS Seroconversion during DVR use did not negatively affect clinical presentation or treatment outcome. Mutation patterns at virologic failure were in line with individuals failing an NNRTI-based regimen. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION NCT01618058.
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Affiliation(s)
- John Steytler
- International Partnership for Microbicides South Africa NPC, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Charles Craig
- Research Virology Consulting Ltd, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom
| | | | - Jeremy Nuttall
- International Partnership for Microbicides, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Neliëtte van Niekerk
- International Partnership for Microbicides South Africa NPC, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - John Mellors
- Microbicide Trials Network Virology Core Laboratory, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Urvi Parikh
- Microbicide Trials Network Virology Core Laboratory, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Carole Wallis
- Bio-Analytical Research Corporation Laboratory, Johannesburg, South Africa
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Nxumalo NC, Shongwe MC, Gwebu N, Ngcamphalala C, Nsibandze BS, Nkambule R, Nuwagaba-Biribonwoha H. "Our parents kiss in front of us": Reasons for early sexual debut among in-school youth in the Manzini Region in Eswatini. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0282828. [PMID: 36897882 PMCID: PMC10004614 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Early sexual debut (i.e., sex before the age of 15 years), especially if it is unprotected, may increase the risk of acquiring HIV, sexually transmitted infections, and unwanted pregnancies. We investigated the reasons for early sexual debut among in-school youth in Eswatini, a setting with high HIV incidence among youth. METHODS This was a qualitative, exploratory-descriptive study whereby data were collected from 81 sexually active in-school youth through seven focus group discussions (FGDs) in four purposively selected public high schools (two urban and two rural) in the Manzini region, Eswatini. In each school, except one, two FGDs (one for boys and one for girls) were conducted. Qualitative data were coded and analyzed thematically in Dedoose version 8.2.14. RESULTS Nearly 40% of the participants reported having initiated sexual activity before 18 years. Six major themes emerged from the data: i) Intrapersonal factors (feeling mature, religiosity, nutritional or dietary patterns); ii) Parenting and household factors (living arrangement, lack of sexuality education, working parents, negative role-modeling from adults); iii) Peer and partner pressure (pressure from friends, threats from sexual partners, intergenerational sexual partnerships and transactional sex, testing sexual prowess, desire to fit in); iv) Contextual factors (neighborhood, location); v) Mass media (cell phone ownership, social media, and television shows or movies); and vi) Cultural factors (attending traditional ceremonies, loss of cultural norms, values, and traditions, and dress code). CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS The poor monitoring and negative role-modeling by elders highlight the importance of involving parents or guardians as key stakeholders when designing interventions targeting risky sexual behavior among youth. The multifaceted nature of the cited reasons for early sexual debut calls for interventions aimed at curbing risky sexual behavior to be culturally sensitive and responsive to the themes identified in this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nomathemba C. Nxumalo
- Health Research Training Program (HRTP), ICAP at Columbia University, Mbabane, Eswatini
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Community Health Nursing Science, University of Eswatini, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Mduduzi Colani Shongwe
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Community Health Nursing Science, University of Eswatini, Mbabane, Eswatini
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Midwifery Science, University of Eswatini, Mbabane, Eswatini
- * E-mail:
| | - Nontobeko Gwebu
- ICAP at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | | | - Bonisile S. Nsibandze
- Health Research Training Program (HRTP), ICAP at Columbia University, Mbabane, Eswatini
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of General Nursing Science, University of Eswatini, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Rejoice Nkambule
- Ministry of Health, Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Harriet Nuwagaba-Biribonwoha
- ICAP at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, Mbabane, Eswatini
- Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America
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Concepcion T, Velloza J, Kemp CG, Bhat A, Bennett IM, Rao D, Polyak CS, Ake JA, Esber A, Dear N, Maswai J, Owuoth J, Sing'oei V, Bahemana E, Iroezindu M, Kibuuka H, Collins PY. Perinatal Depressive Symptoms and Viral Non-suppression Among a Prospective Cohort of Pregnant Women Living with HIV in Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. AIDS Behav 2023; 27:783-795. [PMID: 36210392 PMCID: PMC9944362 DOI: 10.1007/s10461-022-03810-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Depression is common during pregnancy and is associated with reduced adherence to HIV-related care, though little is known about perinatal trajectories of depression and viral suppression among women living with HIV (WLHV) in sub-Saharan Africa. We sought to assess any association between perinatal depressive symptoms and viral non-suppression among WLWH. Depressive symptomatology and viral load data were collected every 6 months from WLWH enrolled in the African Cohort Study (AFRICOS; January 2013-February 2020). Generalized estimating equations modeled associations between depressive symptoms [Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CES-D) ≥ 16] and viral non-suppression. Of 1722 WLWH, 248 (14.4%) had at least one pregnancy (291 total) and for 61 pregnancies (21.0%), women reported depressive symptoms (13.4% pre-conception, 7.6% pregnancy, 5.5% one-year postpartum). Depressive symptomatology was associated with increased odds of viral non-suppression (aOR 2.2; 95% CI 1.2-4.0, p = 0.011). Identification and treatment of depression among women with HIV may improve HIV outcomes for mothers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tessa Concepcion
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Jennifer Velloza
- Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Christopher G Kemp
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Amritha Bhat
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Ian M Bennett
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Family Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Deepa Rao
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Christina S Polyak
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
- Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc., Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Julie A Ake
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Allahna Esber
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
- Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc., Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Nicole Dear
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
- Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc., Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Jonah Maswai
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
- US Army Medical Research Directorate-Africa, Kericho, Kenya
| | - John Owuoth
- U.S. Army Medical Research Directorate-Africa, Kisumu, Kenya
- HJF Medical Research International, Kisumu, Kenya
| | - Valentine Sing'oei
- U.S. Army Medical Research Directorate-Africa, Kisumu, Kenya
- HJF Medical Research International, Kisumu, Kenya
| | - Emmanuel Bahemana
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
- HJF Medical Research International, Mbeya, Tanzania
| | - Michael Iroezindu
- U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
- HJF Medical Research International, Abuja, Nigeria
| | - Hannah Kibuuka
- Makerere University Walter Reed Project, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Pamela Y Collins
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
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22
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Fonjungo PN, Lecher S, Zeh C, Rottinghaus E, Chun H, Adje-Toure C, Lloyd S, Mwangi JW, Mwasekaga M, Eshete YM, Pati R, Mots’oane T, Mitruka K, Beukes A, Mwangi C, Bowen N, Hamunime N, Beard RS, Kabuje A, Nabadda S, Auld AF, Balachandra S, Zungu I, Kandulu J, Alemnji G, Ehui E, Alexander H, Ellenberger D. Progress in scale up of HIV viral load testing in select sub-Saharan African countries 2016-2018. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0282652. [PMID: 36920918 PMCID: PMC10016655 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 02/19/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION We assessed progress in HIV viral load (VL) scale up across seven sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries and discussed challenges and strategies for improving VL coverage among patients on anti-retroviral therapy (ART). METHODS A retrospective review of VL testing was conducted in Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Tanzania, and Uganda from January 2016 through June 2018. Data were collected and included the cumulative number of ART patients, number of patients with ≥ 1 VL test result (within the preceding 12 months), the percent of VL test results indicating viral suppression, and the mean turnaround time for VL testing. RESULTS Between 2016 and 2018, the proportion of PLHIV on ART in all 7 countries increased (range 5.7%-50.2%). During the same time period, the cumulative number of patients with one or more VL test increased from 22,996 to 917,980. Overall, viral suppression rates exceeded 85% for all countries except for Côte d'Ivoire at 78% by June 2018. Reported turnaround times for VL testing results improved in 5 out of 7 countries by between 5.4 days and 27.5 days. CONCLUSIONS These data demonstrate that remarkable progress has been made in the scale-up of HIV VL testing in the seven SSA countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter N. Fonjungo
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Shirley Lecher
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Clement Zeh
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Erin Rottinghaus
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Helen Chun
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Christiane Adje-Toure
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
| | - Spencer Lloyd
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Jane W. Mwangi
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Michael Mwasekaga
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | | | - Rituparna Pati
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | | | - Kiren Mitruka
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Anita Beukes
- Namibia Institute of Pathology, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Christina Mwangi
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Kampala, Uganda
| | | | | | - Rachel S. Beard
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Windhoek, Namibia
| | | | | | - Andrew F. Auld
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Shirish Balachandra
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
| | - Innocent Zungu
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | | | - George Alemnji
- Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator and Health Diplomacy, U.S. Department of State, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Eboi Ehui
- Ministry of Health, Abidjan, Côte D’Ivoire
| | - Heather Alexander
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Dennis Ellenberger
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
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Nwaokoro P, Sanwo O, Toyo O, Akpan U, Nwanja E, Elechi I, Ukpong KA, Idiong H, Gana B, Badru T, Idemudia A, Ogbechie MD, Imohi P, Achanya A, Oqua D, Kakanfo K, Olatunbosun K, Umoh A, Essiet P, Usanga I, Ezeanolue E, Obiora-Okafo C, James E, Iyortim I, Chiegil R, Khamofu H, Pandey SR, Bateganya M. Achieving HIV epidemic control through integrated community and facility-based strategies: Lessons learnt from ART-surge implementation in Akwa Ibom, Nigeria. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0278946. [PMID: 36542606 PMCID: PMC9770335 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0278946] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2022] [Accepted: 11/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
This study examines the lessons learnt from the implementation of a surge program in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria as part of the Strengthening Integrated Delivery of HIV/AIDS Services (SIDHAS) Project. In this analysis, we included all clients who received HIV counseling and testing services, tested HIV positive, and initiated ART in SIDHAS-supported local government areas (LGAs) from April 2017 to March 2021. We employed descriptive and inferential statistics to analyze our results. A total of 2,018,082 persons were tested for HIV. Out of those tested, 102,165 (5.1%) tested HIV-positive. Comparing the pre-surge and post-surge periods, we observed an increase in HIV testing from 490,450 to 2,018,082 (p≤0.031) and in HIV-positive individuals identified from 21,234 to 102,165 (p≤0.001) respectively. Of those newly identified positives during the surge, 98.26% (100,393/102,165) were linked to antiretroviral therapy compared to 99.24% (21,073/21,234) pre-surge. Retention improved from 83.3% to 92.3% (p<0.001), and viral suppression improved from 73.5% to 96.2% (p<0.001). A combination of community and facility-based interventions implemented during the surge was associated with the rapid increase in case finding, retention, and viral suppression; propelling the State towards HIV epidemic control. HIV programs should consider a combination of community and facility-based interventions in their programming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pius Nwaokoro
- Family Health International, Abuja, Nigeria
- * E-mail:
| | | | - Otoyo Toyo
- Achieving Health Nigeria Initiative (AHNi), Abuja, Nigeria
| | - Uduak Akpan
- Achieving Health Nigeria Initiative (AHNi), Abuja, Nigeria
| | - Esther Nwanja
- Achieving Health Nigeria Initiative (AHNi), Abuja, Nigeria
| | | | | | - Helen Idiong
- Achieving Health Nigeria Initiative (AHNi), Abuja, Nigeria
| | - Bala Gana
- Achieving Health Nigeria Initiative (AHNi), Abuja, Nigeria
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Dorothy Oqua
- Howard University Global Initiative, Abuja, Nigeria
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Echezona Ezeanolue
- Center for Translation & Implementation Research College of Medicine, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria
| | | | | | | | - Robert Chiegil
- Family Health International, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | | | | | - Moses Bateganya
- Family Health International, Durham, NC, United States of America
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Nguyen LT, De AK, Le KAA, Pham CM, Khanh L, Hoang VTH, Abdul-Quader AS. Estimated population size of the people who inject drugs in Thai Nguyen, Vietnam: A two survey capture-recapture study using respondent driven sampling. PLOS Glob Public Health 2022; 2:e0000944. [PMID: 36962847 PMCID: PMC10021397 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0000944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
To develop an appropriate programmatic response to the concentrated HIV epidemic, program managers require reliable estimates of the sizes of the key populations. This study attempts to estimate the population size of people who inject drugs (PWID) in Thai Nguyen-a province in the northern part of Vietnam. Two source capture-recapture population size estimates were calculated using data from two respondent driven sampling survey rounds conducted in 5 selected districts from May to August 2019. The population size of the PWID was calculated based on the number of PWID recruited in each survey and 'recaptured' during the first and the second survey. Additionally, personal network size data collected in the RDS was used to measure the population of PWID using the Successive Sampling Population Size Estimate (SS-PSE) method. The population of PWID estimated in five selected districts using the two capture-recapture method (CRC) (median = 5,396, 95% CI: 4,011-9,100) was slightly lower than estimated using SS-PSE with RDS survey 1 (median = 5,580, 95% CI: 3,024-9,272) and higher than when using SS-PSE with RDS survey 2 (median = 4,793; 95% CI: 2,310-8,618). The provincial PWID population estimates based on various approaches (e.g. extrapolation based on the prevalence of PWID in the districts) ranged from 6,498 (95% CI: 4,829-10,957) to around 6,807 (95% CI: 5,341-10,527). A provincial estimate of 6,782 PWID, with a confidence interval ranging from 5,312 to 10,527, will help guide planning and resource allocation to support appropriate levels of HIV prevention, care, and treatment services in the Thai Nguyen province.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ly Thuy Nguyen
- Division of Global HIV and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Anindya K. De
- Division of Global HIV and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Kim Anh Ai Le
- HIV department, Provincial Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Thai Nguyen, Vietnam
| | - Cuong Manh Pham
- HIV department, Provincial Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Thai Nguyen, Vietnam
| | - Le Khanh
- HIV department, Provincial Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Thai Nguyen, Vietnam
| | - Van Thi Hai Hoang
- Department of Global Health, School of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Hanoi Medical University, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Abu S. Abdul-Quader
- Division of Global HIV and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
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25
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Shanaube K, Gachie T, Hoddinott G, Schaap A, Floyd S, Mainga T, Bond V, Hayes R, Fidler S, Ayles H. Depressive symptoms and HIV risk behaviours among adolescents enrolled in the HPTN071 (PopART) trial in Zambia and South Africa. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0278291. [PMID: 36454874 PMCID: PMC9714741 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0278291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 11/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mental health is a critical and neglected public health problem for adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa. In this paper we aim to determine the prevalence of depressive symptoms and the association with HIV risk behaviours in adolescents aged 15-19 years in Zambia and SA. METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional survey from August-November 2017 in seven control communities of HPTN 071 (PopART) trial (a community-randomised trial of universal HIV testing and treatment), enrolling approximately 1400 eligible adolescents. HIV-status was self-reported. Depressive symptoms were measured with the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ), with a positive screen if adolescents scored ≥12. We fitted a logistic regression model to identify correlates of depressive symptoms with subgroup analyses among those who self-reported ever having had sex, by gender and country. RESULTS Out of 6997 households approached, 6057 (86.6%) were enumerated. 2546 adolescents were enumerated of whom 2120 (83.3%) consented to participate and were administered the SMFQ. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 584/2120 (27.6%) [95%CI: 25.7%-29.5%]. Adolescents in SA were less likely to experience depressive symptoms (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] = 0.63 (95% CI: 0.50, 0.79), p-value<0.0001). Female adolescents (AOR = 1.46 (95% CI: 1.19, 1.81), p-value<0.0001); those who reported ever having sex and being forced into sex (AOR = 1.80 (95% CI: 1.45, 2.23), p-value<0.001) and AOR = 1.67 (95% CI: 0.99, 2.84); p-value = 0.057 respectively) were more likely to experience depressive symptoms. Among 850 (40.1%) adolescents who self-reported to ever having had sex; those who used alcohol/drugs during their last sexual encounter were more likely to experience depressive symptoms (AOR = 2.18 (95% CI: 1.37, 3.47); p-value = 0.001), whereas those who reported using a condom were less likely to experience depressive symptoms (AOR = 0.74 (95% CI: 0.55, 1.00); p-value = 0.053). CONCLUSION The prevalence of depressive symptoms among adolescents ranged from 25-30% and was associated with increased HIV-risk behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Thomas Gachie
- Zambart, Lusaka, Zambia
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Graeme Hoddinott
- Desmond Tutu TB Centre, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Albertus Schaap
- Zambart, Lusaka, Zambia
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sian Floyd
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | | | - Virginia Bond
- Zambart, Lusaka, Zambia
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Richard Hayes
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sarah Fidler
- Department of infectious disease, Imperial College, London, Imperial College NIHR BRC, United Kingdom
| | - Helen Ayles
- Zambart, Lusaka, Zambia
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
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26
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Mutisya I, Muthoni E, Ondondo RO, Muthusi J, Omoto L, Pahe C, Katana A, Ngugi E, Masamaro K, Kingwara L, Dobbs T, Bronson M, Patel HK, Sewe N, Naitore D, De Cock K, Ngugi C, Nganga L. A national household survey on HIV prevalence and clinical cascade among children aged ≤15 years in Kenya (2018). PLoS One 2022; 17:e0277613. [PMID: 36417391 PMCID: PMC9683548 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
We analyzed data from the 2018 Kenya Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment (KENPHIA), a cross-sectional, nationally representative survey, to estimate the burden and prevalence of pediatric HIV infection, identify associated factors, and describe the clinical cascade among children aged < 15 years in Kenya. Interviewers collected information from caregivers or guardians on child's demographics, HIV testing, and treatment history. Blood specimens were collected for HIV serology and if HIV-positive, the samples were tested for viral load and antiretrovirals (ARV). For participants <18 months TNA PCR is performed. We computed weighted proportions with 95% confidence intervals (CI), accounting for the complex survey design. We used bivariable and multivariable logistic regression to assess factors associated with HIV prevalence. Separate survey weights were developed for interview responses and for biomarker testing to account for the survey design and non-response. HIV burden was estimated by multiplying HIV prevalence by the national population projection by age for 2018. Of 9072 survey participants (< 15 years), 87% (7865) had blood drawn with valid HIV test results. KENPHIA identified 57 HIV-positive children, translating to an HIV prevalence of 0.7%, (95% CI: 0.4%-1.0%) and an estimated 138,900 (95% CI: 84,000-193,800) of HIV among children in Kenya. Specifically, children who were orphaned had about 2 times higher odds of HIV-infection compared to those not orphaned, adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR) 2.2 (95% CI:1.0-4.8). Additionally, children whose caregivers had no knowledge of their HIV status also had 2 times higher odds of HIV-infection compared to whose caregivers had knowledge of their HIV status, aOR 2.4 (95% CI: 1.1-5.4)". From the unconditional analysis; population level estimates, 78.9% of HIV-positive children had known HIV status (95% CI: 67.1%-90.2%), 73.6% (95% CI: 60.9%-86.2%) were receiving ART, and 49% (95% CI: 32.1%-66.7%) were virally suppressed. However, in the clinical cascade for HIV infected children, 92% (95% CI: 84.4%-100%) were receiving ART, and of these, 67.1% (95% CI: 45.1%-89.2%) were virally suppressed. The KENPHIA survey confirms a substantial HIV burden among children in Kenya, especially among orphans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Immaculate Mutisya
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
- * E-mail:
| | - Evelyn Muthoni
- National AIDS & STI Control Programme, Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Raphael O. Ondondo
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Jacques Muthusi
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Lennah Omoto
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Charlotte Pahe
- National AIDS & STI Control Programme, Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Abraham Katana
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Evelyn Ngugi
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Kenneth Masamaro
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Leonard Kingwara
- National AIDS & STI Control Programme, Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Trudy Dobbs
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Megan Bronson
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Hetal K. Patel
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Nicholas Sewe
- National AIDS & STI Control Programme, Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Doris Naitore
- International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Kevin De Cock
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Catherine Ngugi
- National AIDS & STI Control Programme, Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Lucy Nganga
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
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Grant-McAuley W, Laeyendecker O, Monaco D, Chen A, Hudelson SE, Klock E, Brookmeyer R, Morrison D, Piwowar-Manning E, Morrison CS, Hayes R, Ayles H, Bock P, Kosloff B, Shanaube K, Mandla N, van Deventer A, Ruczinski I, Kammers K, Larman HB, Eshleman SH. Evaluation of multi-assay algorithms for cross-sectional HIV incidence estimation in settings with universal antiretroviral treatment. BMC Infect Dis 2022; 22:838. [PMID: 36368950 PMCID: PMC9652879 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-022-07850-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Multi-assay algorithms (MAAs) are used to estimate population-level HIV incidence and identify individuals with recent infection. Many MAAs use low viral load (VL) as a biomarker for long-term infection. This could impact incidence estimates in settings with high rates of early HIV treatment initiation. We evaluated the performance of two MAAs that do not include VL. METHODS Samples were collected from 219 seroconverters (infected < 1 year) and 4376 non-seroconverters (infected > 1 year) in the HPTN 071 (PopART) trial; 28.8% of seroconverter samples and 73.2% of non-seroconverter samples had VLs ≤ 400 copies/mL. Samples were tested with the Limiting Antigen Avidity assay (LAg) and JHU BioRad-Avidity assays. Antibody reactivity to two HIV peptides was measured using the MSD U-PLEX assay. Two MAAs were evaluated that do not include VL: a MAA that includes the LAg-Avidity assay and BioRad-Avidity assay (LAg + BR) and a MAA that includes the LAg-Avidity assay and two peptide biomarkers (LAg + PepPair). Performance of these MAAs was compared to a widely used MAA that includes LAg and VL (LAg + VL). RESULTS The incidence estimate for LAg + VL (1.29%, 95% CI: 0.97-1.62) was close to the observed longitudinal incidence (1.34% 95% CI: 1.17-1.53). The incidence estimates for the other two MAAs were higher (LAg + BR: 2.56%, 95% CI 2.01-3.11; LAg + PepPair: 2.84%, 95% CI: 1.36-4.32). LAg + BR and LAg + PepPair also misclassified more individuals infected > 2 years as recently infected than LAg + VL (1.2% [42/3483 and 1.5% [51/3483], respectively, vs. 0.2% [6/3483]). LAg + BR classified more seroconverters as recently infected than LAg + VL or LAg + PepPair (80 vs. 58 and 50, respectively) and identified ~ 25% of virally suppressed seroconverters as recently infected. CONCLUSIONS The LAg + VL MAA produced a cross-sectional incidence estimate that was closer to the longitudinal estimate than two MAAs that did not include VL. The LAg + BR MAA classified the greatest number of individual seroconverters as recently infected but had a higher false recent rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wendy Grant-McAuley
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Oliver Laeyendecker
- Laboratory of Immunoregulation, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Daniel Monaco
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Athena Chen
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Sarah E Hudelson
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Ethan Klock
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Ron Brookmeyer
- Department of Biostatistics, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Douglas Morrison
- Department of Public Health Sciences, UC Davis School of Medicine, Davis, CA, USA
| | | | - Charles S Morrison
- Behavioral, Epidemiologic, and Clinical Sciences, Durham, NC, FHI 360, USA
| | - Richard Hayes
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Helen Ayles
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Peter Bock
- Desmond Tutu TB Center, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa
| | - Barry Kosloff
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Kwame Shanaube
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Public Health, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Nomtha Mandla
- Desmond Tutu TB Center, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa
| | - Anneen van Deventer
- Desmond Tutu TB Center, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa
| | - Ingo Ruczinski
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kai Kammers
- Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - H Benjamin Larman
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Susan H Eshleman
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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28
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Murphy JP, Kgowedi S, Coetzee L, Maluleke V, Letswalo D, Mongwenyana C, Subrayen P, Charalambous S, Mvusi L, Dlamini S, Martinson N, Moolla A, Miot J, Evans D. Assessment of facility-based tuberculosis data quality in an integrated HIV/TB database in three South African districts. PLOS Glob Public Health 2022; 2:e0000312. [PMID: 36962485 PMCID: PMC10021242 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0000312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2022] [Accepted: 09/01/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Assessment of data quality is essential to successful monitoring & evaluation of tuberculosis (TB) services. South Africa uses the Three Interlinked Electronic Register (TIER.Net) to monitor TB diagnoses and treatment outcomes. We assessed the quality of routine programmatic data as captured in TIER.Net. METHODS We reviewed 277 records from routine data collected for adults who had started TB treatment for drug-sensitive (DS-) TB between 10/2018-12/2019 from 15 facilities across three South African districts using three sources and three approaches to link these (i.e., two approaches compared TIER.NET with the TB Treatment Record while the third approach compared all three sources of TB data: the TB treatment record or patient medical file; the TB Identification Register; and the TB module in TIER.Net). We report agreement and completeness of demographic information and key TB-related variables across all three data sources. RESULTS In our first approach we selected 150 patient records from TIER.Net and found all but one corresponding TB Treatment Record (99%). In our second approach we were also able to find a corresponding TIER.Net record from a starting point of the paper-based, TB Treatment Record for 73/75 (97%) records. We found fewer records 55/75 (73%) in TIER.Net when we used as a starting point records from the TB Identification Register. Demographic information (name, surname, date of birth, and gender) was accurately reported across all three data sources (matching 90% or more). The reporting of key TB-related variables was similar across both the TB Treatment Record and the TB module in TIER.Net (p>0.05). We observed differences in completeness and moderate agreement (Kappa 0.41-0.60) for site of disease, TB treatment outcome and smear microscopy or X-ray as a diagnostic test (p<0.05). We observed more missing items for the TB Treatment record compared to TIER.Net; TB treatment outcome date and site of disease specifically. In comparison, TB treatment start dates as well as HIV-status recording had higher concordance. HIV status and lab results appeared to be more complete in the TB module in TIER.Net than in the TB Treatment Records, and there was "good/substantial" agreement (Kappa 0.61-0.80) for HIV status. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION Our key finding was that the TB Module in TIER.Net was more complete in some key variables including TB treatment outcome. Most TB patient records we reviewed were found on TIER.Net but there was a noticeable gap of TB Identification patient records from the paper register as compared to TIER.Net, including those who tested TB-negative or HIV-negative. There is evidence of complete and "good/substantial" data quality for key TB-related variables, such as "First GeneXpert test result" and "HIV status." Improvements in data completeness of TIER.Net compared to the TB Treatment Record are the most urgent area for improvement, especially recording of TB treatment outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua P. Murphy
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Sharon Kgowedi
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Lezanie Coetzee
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Vongani Maluleke
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Daniel Letswalo
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Constance Mongwenyana
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Pria Subrayen
- The Aurum Institute, Parktown, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Salome Charalambous
- The Aurum Institute, Parktown, Johannesburg, South Africa
- School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Lindiwe Mvusi
- South African National Department of Health, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Sicelo Dlamini
- South African National Department of Health, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Neil Martinson
- Perinatal HIV Research Unit (PHRU), Soweto, South Africa
| | - Aneesa Moolla
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Jacqui Miot
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Denise Evans
- Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HERO), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
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29
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Nonyana NM, Matete M, Lebetkin E, Yacobson I, Strachan M, Ramapepe MA, Malkin M, Chakare T. “PrEP should be available all the time and everywhere”: A qualitative assessment of family planning and PrEP integration in Lesotho. Front Reprod Health 2022; 4:981845. [PMID: 36303649 PMCID: PMC9580645 DOI: 10.3389/frph.2022.981845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Lesotho has a high HIV burden, with women disproportionately affected. Increased access points for HIV prevention services, including oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), should be considered. Using family planning (FP) settings for PrEP services may contribute to greater uptake of HIV prevention methods. Methodology This formative qualitative assessment was conducted in Maseru District, Lesotho and included in-depth interviews with 15 key informants, 10 FP providers in public facilities and community sites, and 15 FP and PrEP clients from facility and community sites. Interviews were audio recorded and in lieu of producing transcripts, teams completed semi-structured data extraction tables after each interview. Findings were compiled and synthesized by participant group into matrices and themes identified through deductive and inductive analysis. Results Policy makers were generally supportive of integration but felt hampered by lack of integration policies and separation of HIV and FP departments at Ministry of Health. Funders stressed the need for coordination among partners to avoid duplication of efforts. Partners felt clients would be interested in PrEP/FP integration and that PrEP demand creation and education were crucial needs. Most providers supported integration, stressing the potential benefit to clients. Barriers discussed included heavy workloads, staff shortages, training needs, separate registers for FP and PrEP, and commodity stock-outs. Providers discussed strengthening integrated services through training, increasing staffing, having job aids and guidelines, merging the FP and PrEP registers, and marketing services together to create demand for both. Clients were overwhelmingly willing to have longer visits to receive comprehensive services and were supportive of receiving PrEP services from FP providers. Clients not using PrEP expressed willingness and interest to use. Clients' suggestions for successful integration included consulting with youth, conducting community outreaches, and improving provider availability. Conclusions Existing FP platforms are established and well-utilized; thus providing opportunities for integrating PrEP. This assessment found support across all groups of respondents for providing PrEP within FP settings and identified a number of facilitators and barriers to integration. As PrEP rollout is relatively nascent in many countries, deepening the evidence base early will enable the utilization of findings to build stronger integrated programs with wider coverage.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Elena Lebetkin
- FHI 360, Durham, NC, United States
- *Correspondence: Elena Lebetkin
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Nsibande DF, Woldesenbet SA, Puren A, Barron P, Maduna VI, Lombard C, Cheyip M, Mogashoa M, Pillay Y, Magasana V, Ramraj T, Kufa T, Kindra G, Goga A, Chirinda W. Investigating the quality of HIV rapid testing practices in public antenatal health care facilities, South Africa. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0268687. [PMID: 36037237 PMCID: PMC9423613 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0268687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Monitoring HIV prevalence using antenatal HIV sentinel surveillance is important for efficient epidemic tracking, programme planning and resource allocation. HIV sentinel surveillance usually employs unlinked anonymous HIV testing which raises ethical, epidemiological and public health challenges in the current era of universal test and treat. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that countries should consider using routine prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) data for surveillance. We audited antenatal care clinics to assess the quality of HIV rapid testing practices as the first step to assess whether South Africa is ready to utilize PMTCT programme data for antenatal HIV surveillance. In 2017, we conducted a cross-sectional survey in 360 randomly sampled antenatal care clinics using the adapted WHO Stepwise-Process-for-Improving-the-Quality-of-HIV-Rapid-Testing (SPI-RT) checklist. We calculated median percentage scores within a domain (domain-specific median score), and across all domains (overall median percentage scores). The latter was used to classify sites according to five implementation levels; (from 0:<40% to 4: 90% or higher). Of 346 (96.1%) facilities assessed, an overall median percentage score of 62.1% (inter-quartile range (IQR): 50.8–71.9%) was obtained. The lowest domain-specific median percentage scores were obtained under training/certification (35% IQR: 10.0–50.0%) and external quality assurance (12.5% IQR: 0.0–50.0%), respectively. The majority (89%) of sites had an overall median score at level 2 or below; of these, 37% required improvement in specific areas and 6.4% in all areas. Facilities in districts implementing the HIV Rapid Test Quality Improvement Initiative and supported by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) had significantly higher median overall scores (65.6% IQR: 53.9–74.2%) (P-value from rank sum test: <0.001) compared with non–PEPFAR–supported facilities (56.6% IQR:47.7–66.0%). We found sub-optimal implementation of HIV rapid testing practices. We recommend the expansion of the PEPFAR-funded Rapid Test Continuous Quality Improvement (RTCQI) support to all antenatal care testing sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duduzile F. Nsibande
- Health Systems Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
- HIV and other Infectious Diseases Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
- * E-mail:
| | - Selamawit A. Woldesenbet
- Center for HIV and STI, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Johannesburg, South Africa
- School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Adrian Puren
- Center for HIV and STI, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Peter Barron
- School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Vincent I. Maduna
- Directorate of Research & Innovation, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Carl Lombard
- Biostatistics Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
- Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Global Health, University of Stellenbosch, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Mireille Cheyip
- United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Mary Mogashoa
- United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Yogan Pillay
- National Department of Health, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Vuyolwethu Magasana
- Health Systems Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
- HIV and other Infectious Diseases Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Trisha Ramraj
- Health Systems Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
- HIV and other Infectious Diseases Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Tendesayi Kufa
- Center for HIV and STI, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Johannesburg, South Africa
- School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Gurpreet Kindra
- United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Ameena Goga
- Health Systems Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
- HIV and other Infectious Diseases Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
- Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Witness Chirinda
- Health Systems Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa
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Mantell JE, Masvawure TB, Zech JM, Reidy W, Msukwa M, Glenshaw M, Grund J, Williams D, Pitt B, Rabkin M. "They are our eyes outside there in the community": Implementing enhanced training, management and monitoring of South Africa’s ward-based primary healthcare outreach teams. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0266445. [PMID: 36018854 PMCID: PMC9417004 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction
In 2018, South Africa’s National Department of Health provided additional resources for ward-based primary healthcare outreach teams (OT) with support from the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. The intervention package included a new training curriculum, enhanced staffing, revised management and supervisory structures, and more intensive monitoring and evaluation (M&E). The goal was to strengthen OT and their impact on both primary healthcare and HIV-specific services. We conducted a process evaluation of this intervention package during its second year and examined implementation successes and challenges.
Methods
We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation at 20 purposively selected facilities in Bojanala and City of Tshwane districts, including surveys with 222 community health workers (CHWs) and outreach team leaders (OTLs); key informant interviews and online surveys with 28 policy and program stakeholders; 70 in-depth interviews with health facility staff; 20 focus group discussions with 194 CHWs; 20 structured health facility assessments; directly-observed time-motion studies; and review of program documents.
Results
Most participants highlighted the hiring and training of CHWs and OTLs as a key implementation success because this had partially alleviated staffing shortages and helped clarify CHWs’ and OTLs’ responsibilities and supervisory structures. The new monitoring tools were welcomed for their potential to improve data collection and program tracking. However, participants highlighted many program challenges: short-lived gains in CHWs’ knowledge and skills due to lack of ongoing training and mentoring; insufficient integration of OT into health facility management structures; persistent shortages of equipment, supplies, transportation, and workspace for CHWs; and insufficient remuneration for staff.
Conclusion
Strengthening and expanding CHW programs, such as OT, requires intensive support and continuous investments. To sustain improvements in training, supervision, and job satisfaction, CHWs must be equipped with needed resources, provided with ongoing supportive supervision, and strengthened by optimized program management, monitoring and processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanne E. Mantell
- HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies, Gender, Sexuality and Health Area, New York State Psychiatric Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Tsitsi B. Masvawure
- Health Studies Program, Center for Interdisciplinary Studies, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Jennifer M. Zech
- ICAP at Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - William Reidy
- ICAP at Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | | | - Mary Glenshaw
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Center for Global Health, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Jonathan Grund
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Center for Global Health, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Daniel Williams
- Division of Global HIV & TB, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Center for Global Health, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Blanche Pitt
- Health Studies Program, Center for Interdisciplinary Studies, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Miriam Rabkin
- ICAP at Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America
- Departments of Medicine and Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, New York, United States of America
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Basenero A, Neidel J, Ikeda DJ, Ashivudhi H, Mpariwa S, Kamangu JWN, Mpalang Kakubu MA, Hans L, Mutandi G, Jed S, Tjituka F, Hamunime N, Agins BD. Integrating hypertension and HIV care in Namibia: A quality improvement collaborative approach. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0272727. [PMID: 35951592 PMCID: PMC9371294 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0272727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2022] [Accepted: 07/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Hypertension (HTN) is highly prevalent among people with HIV (PWH) in Namibia, but screening and treatment for HTN are not routinely offered as part of HIV care delivery. We report the implementation of a quality improvement collaborative (QIC) to accelerate integration of HTN and HIV care within public-sector health facilities in Namibia. Methods Twenty-four facilities participated in the QIC with the aim of increasing HTN screening and treatment among adult PWH (>15 years). HTN was defined according to national treatment guidelines (i.e., systolic blood pressure >140 and/or diastolic blood pressure >90 across three measurements and at least two occasions), and decisions regarding initiation of treatment were made by physicians only. Teams from participating hospitals used quality improvement methods, monthly measurement of performance indicators, and small-scale tests of change to implement contextually tailored interventions. Coaching of sites was performed on a monthly basis by clinical officers with expertise in QI and HIV, and sites were convened as part of learning sessions to facilitate diffusion of effective interventions. Results Between March 2017 and March 2018, hypertension screening occurred as part of 183,043 (86%) clinical encounters at participating facilities. Among 1,759 PWH newly diagnosed with HTN, 992 (56%) were initiated on first-line treatment. Rates of treatment initiation were higher in facilities with an on-site physician (61%) compared to those without one (51%). During the QIC, facility teams identified fourteen interventions to improve HTN screening and treatment. Among barriers to implementation, teams pointed to malfunctions of blood pressure machines and stock outs of antihypertensive medications as common challenges. Conclusions Implementation of a QIC provided a structured approach for integrating HTN and HIV services across 24 high-volume facilities in Namibia. As rates of HTN treatment remained low despite ongoing facility-level changes, policy-level interventions—such as task sharing and supply chain strengthening—should be pursued to further improve delivery of HTN care among PWH beyond initial screening.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Julie Neidel
- Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Daniel J. Ikeda
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | | | | | | | | | - Linea Hans
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Gram Mutandi
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Suzanne Jed
- Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and Health Diplomacy, Pretoria, South Africa
| | | | | | - Bruce D. Agins
- Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, California, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Fernández-Luis S, Fuente-Soro L, Nhampossa T, Lopez-Varela E, Augusto O, Nhacolo A, Vazquez O, Saura-Lázaro A, Guambe H, Tibana K, Ngeno B, Juga AJC, Cowan JG, Urso M, Naniche D. Prompt HIV diagnosis and antiretroviral treatment in postpartum women is crucial for prevention of mother to child transmission during breastfeeding: Survey results in a high HIV prevalence community in southern Mozambique after the implementation of Option B+. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0269835. [PMID: 35917332 PMCID: PMC9345360 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0269835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective World Health Organization recommends promoting breastfeeding without restricting its duration among HIV-positive women on lifelong antiretroviral treatment (ART). There is little data on breastfeeding duration and mother to child transmission (MTCT) beyond 24 months. We compared the duration of breastfeeding in HIV-exposed and HIV-unexposed children and we identified factors associated with postpartum-MTCT in a semi-rural population of Mozambique. Methods This cross-sectional assessment was conducted from October-2017 to April-2018. Mothers who had given birth within the previous 48-months in the Manhiça district were randomly selected to be surveyed and to receive an HIV-test along with their children. Postpartum MTCT was defined as children with an initial HIV positive result beyond 6 weeks of life who initiated breastfeeding if they had a first negative PCR result during the first 6 weeks of life or whose mother had an estimated date of infection after the child’s birth. Cumulative incidence accounting for right-censoring was used to compare breastfeeding duration in HIV-exposed and unexposed children. Fine-Gray regression was used to assess factors associated with postpartum-MTCT. Results Among the 5000 mother-child pairs selected, 69.7% (3486/5000) were located and enrolled. Among those, 27.7% (967/3486) children were HIV-exposed, 62.2% (2169/3486) were HIV-unexposed and for 10.0% (350/3486) HIV-exposure was unknown. Median duration of breastfeeding was 13.0 (95%CI:12.0–14.0) and 20.0 (95%CI:19.0–20.0) months among HIV-exposed and HIV-unexposed children, respectively (p<0.001). Of the 967 HIV-exposed children, 5.3% (51/967) were HIV-positive at the time of the survey. We estimated that 27.5% (14/51) of the MTCT occurred during pregnancy and delivery, 49.0% (2551) postpartum-MTCT and the period of MTCT remained unknown for 23.5% (12/51) of children. In multivariable analysis, mothers’ ART initiation after the date of childbirth was associated (aSHR:9.39 [95%CI:1.75–50.31], p = 0.001), however breastfeeding duration was not associated with postpartum-MTCT (aSHR:0.99 [95%CI:0.96–1.03], p = 0.707). Conclusion The risk for postpartum MTCT was nearly tenfold higher in women newly diagnosed and/or initiating ART postpartum. This highlights the importance of sustained HIV screening and prompt ART initiation in postpartum women in Sub-Saharan African countries. Under conditions where HIV-exposed infants born to mothers on ART receive adequate PMTCT, extending breastfeeding duration may be recommended.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheila Fernández-Luis
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
- * E-mail:
| | - Laura Fuente-Soro
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Tacilta Nhampossa
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
- Instituto Nacional de Saúde (INS), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Elisa Lopez-Varela
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Orvalho Augusto
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Ariel Nhacolo
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Olalla Vazquez
- Hospital Clínico Universitario de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago, Spain
| | - Anna Saura-Lázaro
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Helga Guambe
- Ministério da Saúde de Moçambique (MISAU), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Kwalila Tibana
- Ministério da Saúde de Moçambique (MISAU), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Bernadette Ngeno
- U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | | | | | - Marilena Urso
- U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Denise Naniche
- Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM), Maputo, Mozambique
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
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Vojnov L, Carmona S, Zeh C, Markby J, Boeras D, Prescott MR, Mayne ALH, Sawadogo S, Adje-Toure C, Zhang G, Perez Gonzalez M, Stevens WS, Doherty M, Yang C, Alexander H, Peter TF, Nkengasong J. The performance of using dried blood spot specimens for HIV-1 viral load testing: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS Med 2022; 19:e1004076. [PMID: 35994520 PMCID: PMC9447868 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1004076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2018] [Revised: 09/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Accurate routine HIV viral load testing is essential for assessing the efficacy of antiretroviral treatment (ART) regimens and the emergence of drug resistance. While the use of plasma specimens is the standard for viral load testing, its use is restricted by the limited ambient temperature stability of viral load biomarkers in whole blood and plasma during storage and transportation and the limited cold chain available between many health care facilities in resource-limited settings. Alternative specimen types and technologies, such as dried blood spots, may address these issues and increase access to viral load testing; however, their technical performance is unclear. To address this, we conducted a meta-analysis comparing viral load results from paired dried blood spot and plasma specimens analyzed with commonly used viral load testing technologies. METHODS AND FINDINGS Standard databases, conferences, and gray literature were searched in 2013 and 2018. Nearly all studies identified (60) were conducted between 2007 and 2018. Data from 40 of the 60 studies were included in the meta-analysis, which accounted for a total of 10,871 paired dried blood spot:plasma data points. We used random effects models to determine the bias, accuracy, precision, and misclassification for each viral load technology and to account for between-study variation. Dried blood spot specimens produced consistently higher mean viral loads across all technologies when compared to plasma specimens. However, when used to identify treatment failure, each technology compared best to plasma at a threshold of 1,000 copies/ml, the present World Health Organization recommended treatment failure threshold. Some heterogeneity existed between technologies; however, 5 technologies had a sensitivity greater than 95%. Furthermore, 5 technologies had a specificity greater than 85% yet 2 technologies had a specificity less than 60% using a treatment failure threshold of 1,000 copies/ml. The study's main limitation was the direct applicability of findings as nearly all studies to date used dried blood spot samples prepared in laboratories using precision pipetting that resulted in consistent input volumes. CONCLUSIONS This analysis provides evidence to support the implementation and scale-up of dried blood spot specimens for viral load testing using the same 1,000 copies/ml treatment failure threshold as used with plasma specimens. This may support improved access to viral load testing in resource-limited settings lacking the required infrastructure and cold chain storage for testing with plasma specimens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara Vojnov
- Clinton Health Access Initiative, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Sergio Carmona
- National Health Laboratory Service, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Clement Zeh
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | | | - Debrah Boeras
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Marta R. Prescott
- Clinton Health Access Initiative, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | | | - Souleymane Sawadogo
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Christiane Adje-Toure
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire
| | - Guoqing Zhang
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | | | - Wendy S. Stevens
- National Health Laboratory Service, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Department of Molecular Medicine and Haematology, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Meg Doherty
- World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Chunfu Yang
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Heather Alexander
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Trevor F. Peter
- Clinton Health Access Initiative, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - John Nkengasong
- Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/TB, US Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
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Kalibbala D, Kakande A, Serunjogi R, Williamson D, Mumpe-Mwanja D, Namale-Matovu J, Valencia D, Nalwoga B, Namirembe C, Seyionga J, Nanfuka M, Nakimuli S, Achom MO, Mwambi K, Musoke P, Barlow-Mosha L. Mobile tablets for real-time data collection for hospital-based birth defects surveillance in Kampala, Uganda: Lessons learned. PLOS Glob Public Health 2022; 2:e0000662. [PMID: 35910484 PMCID: PMC9335296 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0000662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Sustainable birth defects surveillance systems provide countries with estimates of the prevalence of birth defects to guide prevention, care activities, and evaluate interventions. We used free and open-source software (Open Data Kit) to implement an electronic system to collect data for a hospital-based birth defects surveillance system at four major hospitals in Kampala, Uganda. We describe the establishment, successes, challenges, and lessons learned from using mobile tablets to capture data and photographs. After intensive training, surveillance midwives collected data using Android tablets with inbuilt logic checks; another surveillance midwife checked the quality of the data in real-time before data were securely uploaded onto a local server. Paper forms were used when needed as a backup for the electronic system. We experienced several challenges implementing the surveillance system, including forgotten passwords, unstable network, reduced tablet speed and freezing, loss of touch-screen sensitivity, decreased battery strength, and repetitive extensive retraining. We addressed these challenges by backing up and removing all photos from the tablet, uninstalling irrelevant applications to the study to increase storage space and speed, and monitoring and updating the system based mainly on feedback from the midwives. From August 2015 to December 2018, surveillance midwives documented information on 110,752 births at the participating hospitals. Of these, 110,573 (99.8%) were directly entered into the electronic data system and 179 (0.2%) were captured on paper forms. The use of mobile tablets for real-time data collection was successful in a hospital-based birth defects surveillance system in a resource-limited setting. Extensive training and follow-up can overcome challenges and are key to preparing staff for a successful data collection system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dennis Kalibbala
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Ayoub Kakande
- Medical Research Council/Uganda Virus Research Institute and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Uganda Research Unit, Entebbe, Uganda
| | - Robert Serunjogi
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Dhelia Williamson
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Daniel Mumpe-Mwanja
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Joyce Namale-Matovu
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Diana Valencia
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Beatrice Nalwoga
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Christine Namirembe
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Joan Seyionga
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Margaret Nanfuka
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | - Sophia Nakimuli
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
| | | | - Kenneth Mwambi
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Philippa Musoke
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
- Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Linda Barlow-Mosha
- Makerere University–Johns Hopkins University Research Collaboration (MUJHU), Kampala, Uganda
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Marukutira T, Ussery F, Kadima E, Mills LA, Moore J, Block L, Bachanas P, Davis S, Schissler T, Mosha R, Komotere O, Diswai T, Ntsuape C, Lebelonyane R, Bock N. Male circumcision uptake during the Botswana Combination Prevention Project. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0269178. [PMID: 35704556 PMCID: PMC9200323 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0269178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) uptake has been slow in some countries, including Botswana. To inform demand creation efforts, we examined sociodemographic characteristics and referral procedures associated with VMMC uptake in the Botswana Combination Prevention Project (BCPP) and examined the effectiveness of referral of men to MC services from HIV testing venues. DESIGN BCPP was a community-randomized trial evaluating the impact of a combination HIV prevention package which included VMMC on community HIV incidence. We conducted a sub-analysis of VMMC uptake in intervention communities. METHODS During the initial VMMC campaign in 15 intervention communities, baseline male circumcision (MC) status was assessed among men eligible for HIV testing. Uncircumcised male community residents aged 16-49 years with negative/unknown HIV status were mobilized and linked to study VMMC services. Outcomes included MC baseline status and uptake through study services. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed to identify factors associated with MC uptake. RESULTS Of 12,864 men eligible for testing, 50% (n = 6,448) were already circumcised. Among the uncircumcised men (n = 6,416), 10% (n = 635) underwent MC. Of the 5,071 men identified as eligible for MC through HIV testing services, 78% declined referral and less than 1% of those were circumcised. Of those accepting referral (n = 1,107), 16% were circumcised. Younger (16-24 years) (aOR: 1.51; 95%CI:1.22,1.85), unemployed men (aOR:1.34; 95%CI: 1.06,1.69), and those undergoing HIV testing at mobile venues (aOR: 1.88; 95%CI: 1.53,2.31) were more likely to get circumcised. Fear of pain was the most prevalent (27%) reason given for not being circumcised. CONCLUSION Younger, unemployed men seeking HIV testing at mobile sites in Botswana were more likely to get VMMC. Addressing unique barriers for employed and older men may be necessary. Given the simplicity of VMMC as an intervention, the HIV testing programs offer a platform for identifying uncircumcised men and offering information and encouragement to access services.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Faith Ussery
- Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Etienne Kadima
- Botswana-Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Lisa A. Mills
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Jan Moore
- Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Lisa Block
- Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
- Northrop Grumman Corporation, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Pam Bachanas
- Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Stephanie Davis
- Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | | | | | | | | | - Conrad Ntsuape
- Department of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Care, Ministry of Health, Gaborone, Botswana
| | | | - Naomi Bock
- Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
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Okal JO, Sarna A, Lango D, Matheka J, Owuor D, Kinywa EA, Kalibala S. Client Experiences in a Mobile-Phone Counseling Intervention for Enhancing Access to Prevention of Mother To-Child Transmission (PMTCT) Services in Kenya. Front Glob Womens Health 2022; 3:785194. [PMID: 35720809 PMCID: PMC9204057 DOI: 10.3389/fgwh.2022.785194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) is considered one of the most successful HIV prevention strategies in detecting and reducing HIV acquisition in utero or at birth. It is anticipated that with the increasing growth of digital technologies mobile phones can be utilized to enhance PMTCT services by improving provider-client interactions, expanding access to counseling services, and assisting in counteracting social and structural barriers to uptake of PMTCT services. Understanding the subjective experiences of women accessing PMTCT services in different settings has the potential to inform the development and promotion of such methods. This paper explores the perspectives of HIV-positive pregnant women attending maternal and neonatal clinic services in Kisumu, Kenya. Methods Data are reported from in-depth interviews with women, following a longitudinal study investigating the impact of a structured, counselor-delivered, mobile phone counseling intervention to promote retention in care and adherence to ARV prophylaxis/treatment, for HIV-positive pregnant women. Thematic content analysis was conducted. Results Discussions indicated that mobile-phone counseling provided useful health-related information, enhanced agency, and assisted mothers access critical PMTCT services across the cascade of care. Similarly, mobile-phone counseling offered personalized one-to-one contact with trained health providers including facilitating discussion of personal issues that likely affect access to services. Findings also identified barriers to the uptake of services, including a lack of partner support, poor health, poverty, facility-related factors, and provider attitudes. Discussion Overall, findings show that mobile-phone counseling is feasible, acceptable, and can enhance access to PMTCT services by overcoming some of the individual and facility-level barriers. Although mobile-phone counseling has not been routinized in most health facilities, future work is needed to assess whether mobile-phone counseling can be scaled-up to aid in the effective use of HIV and PMTCT services, as well as improving other related outcomes for mother and child dyad.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerry Okoth Okal
- Population Council, Nairobi, Kenya
- *Correspondence: Jerry Okoth Okal
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Sam Kalibala
- Population Council, Washington, DC, United States
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Mbita G, Komba AN, Casalini C, Bazant E, Curran K, Christensen A, Nyato D, Kim YM, Reed J, Makyao N, Kategile U, Conserve DF, Faini D, van Roosmalen J, van den Akker T. Predictors of HIV Among 1 Million Clients in High-Risk Male Populations in Tanzania. AIDS Behav 2022; 26:3185-3198. [PMID: 35362905 PMCID: PMC9474353 DOI: 10.1007/s10461-022-03667-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The World Health Organization identified men as an essential group to target with HIV testing and treatment strategies;: men who have sex with men (MSM) and male clients of female sex workers (CFSW) account for 35% of new HIV infections globally. Using a cross-sectional design from a community-based HIV prevention project in Tanzania (October 2015-September 2018) and multivariable logistic regression, we identified predictors of HIV seropositivity among men. Of 1,041,343 men on their initial visit to the project, 36,905 (3.5%) were MSM; 567,005 (54.5%) were CFSW; and 437,343 (42.0%) were other men living near hotspots (OMHA). Three predictors of HIV seropositivity emerged across all three groups: being uncircumcised, having sexually transmitted infection symptoms, and harmful drinking of alcohol before sex. Any reported form of gender-based violence among MSM and OMHA and inconsistent condom use among CFSW were associated with HIV seropositivity. These findings may inform community HIV strategies like self-testing, delivery of pre-exposure prophylaxis and antiretroviral therapy, and behavioral change communication targeting men at higher risk of infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaspar Mbita
- Jhpiego, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania.
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania.
- Jhpiego, Monrovia, Liberia.
| | | | | | - Eva Bazant
- The Task Force for Global Health, Decatur, GA, USA
| | | | | | - Daniel Nyato
- Institute of Population Health Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | | | | | - Neema Makyao
- Ministry of Health Community Development, Gender, Elderly, and Children, National AIDS Control Program, Dodoma, Tanzania
| | | | - Donaldson F Conserve
- Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Diana Faini
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Jos van Roosmalen
- Athena Institute, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Thomas van den Akker
- Athena Institute, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
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Sykes C, Van Horne B, Jones J, Kashuba ADM, Gatto G, Van Der Straten A, Johnson L, Cottrell ML. Intracellular islatravir pharmacology differs between species in an in vitro model: implications for preclinical study design. J Antimicrob Chemother 2022; 77:1000-1004. [PMID: 35134162 PMCID: PMC9126067 DOI: 10.1093/jac/dkac015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/28/2021] [Indexed: 08/09/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Islatravir (4'-ethynyl-2-fluoro-2'-deoxyadenosine; EFdA) is a first-in-class nucleoside reverse transcriptase translocation inhibitor (NRTTI) being investigated for HIV treatment and prevention. EFdA is intracellularly phosphorylated to EFdA-triphosphate (EFdA-tp), a competitive substrate of deoxyadenosine-triphosphate (dATP). Thus, translating safety and efficacy findings from preclinical studies relies on the assumption that EFdA's intracellular pharmacology can be extrapolated across species. OBJECTIVES We investigated how EFdA is phosphorylated across animal species commonly used for preclinical models in drug development to identify those that most closely matched humans. METHODS PBMCs were isolated from whole blood of six species (human, rhesus macaque non-human primate (rmNHP), rat, minipig, dog, and rabbit) using Ficoll separation and counted on a haemocytometer by Trypan blue staining. One million live cells were cultured in media supplemented with 10 U/mL human IL-2, 10% FBS and 1% antibiotics and treated with 0, 17, 170, and 1700 nM EFdA (n = 3 replicates per concentration). After 24 h, representative cell counts were derived from untreated control wells (as above), cells were washed in PBS, and lysed with 70:30 methanol:water. EFdA-tp and dATP concentrations were quantified by HPLC-MS/MS and normalized to the representative live cell counts for each species. RESULTS When compared to human values, EFdA-tp concentrations for each EFdA treatment concentration were lower in all species (rmNHP 1.5-2.1-fold, rat 4.5-15-fold, minipig 37-71-fold, dog and rabbit >100-fold). Additionally, rmNHP and dog PBMCs exhibited significantly higher (7-10-fold; P < 0.001) dATP when compared with human PBMCs. CONCLUSIONS Given intracellular pharmacology differences, these preclinical models may be a conservative estimate of EFdA's intracellular pharmacokinetics and efficacy in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Craig Sykes
- UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Brian Van Horne
- UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Justin Jones
- UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | | | - Gregory Gatto
- RTI International, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA
| | - Ariane Van Der Straten
- Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, Dept of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- ASTRA Consulting, Kensington, CA, USA
| | - Leah Johnson
- RTI International, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA
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Ruangtragool L, Silver R, Machiha A, Gwanzura L, Hakim A, Lupoli K, Musuka G, Patel H, Mugurungi O, Tippett Barr BA, Rogers JH. Factors associated with active syphilis among men and women aged 15 years and older in the Zimbabwe Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (2015–2016). PLoS One 2022; 17:e0261057. [PMID: 35298475 PMCID: PMC8929562 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Ulcerative STIs, including syphilis, increase the risk for HIV acquisition and transmission due to the presence of ulcers/chancres that serve as a point-of-entry and exit for HIV. In Zimbabwe, diagnosis of syphilis often occurs in pregnant women who seek ANC services where syphilis testing is offered, and among men and women who seek health care for STIs. Zimbabwe’s national syphilis estimates are based on these diagnosed cases, with little information available about the prevalence of untreated syphilis among the general population. This analysis uses data from ZIMPHIA (2015–2016) to describe factors associated with active syphilis among men and women ages 15 years and older. Methods ZIMPHIA collected blood specimens for HIV and syphilis testing from 22,501 consenting individuals (ages 15 years and older). Household HIV testing used the national HIV rapid-testing algorithm with HIV-positive results confirmed at satellite laboratories using Geenius HIV-1/2 rapid test (Bio-rad, Hercules, California, USA). Point-of-care non-Treponemal and Treponemal syphilis testing was performed using Chembio’s Dual-Path Platform Syphilis Screen & Confirm Assay. Factors associated with active syphilis were explored using multiple variable, weighted logistic regression and were stratified by gender. Results The likelihood of active syphilis in HIV-positive females was 3.7 times greater in HIV-positive females than HIV-negative females (aOR: 3.7, 95% CI 2.3–5.9). Among males odds of having active syphilis was 5 times higher among those that engaged in transactional sex than those who did not have sex or transactional sex (aOR: 5.3, 95% CI 1.9–14.7), and 6 times higher if HIV positive versus negative (aOR: 5.9, 95% CI 3.0–12.0). Urban residence, province, education (highest attended), marital status, number of sex partners, consistency of condom use, pregnancy status (females), and circumcision status (males) were not significant in the adjusted model for either females or males. Conculsion HIV status was found to be the only factor associated with active syphilis in both females and males. Given the persistent link between HIV and active syphilis, it is prudent to link individuals’ diagnoses and treatments, as recommended by the WHO. Enhanced integration of STI and HIV services in health delivery points such as ANC, reproductive services, or male circumcision clinics, combined with consistent, targeted outreach to high-risk populations and their partners, may assist the MOHCC to eliminate active syphilis in Zimbabwe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leala Ruangtragool
- Public Health Institute / CDC Global HIV Surveillance Fellow, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Rachel Silver
- Public Health Institute / CDC Global HIV Surveillance Fellow, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - Anna Machiha
- Ministry of Health and Child Care, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | | | - Avi Hakim
- Division of Global HIV/TB, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Katie Lupoli
- Division of Global HIV/TB, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | | | - Hetal Patel
- Division of Global HIV/TB, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | | | - Beth A. Tippett Barr
- Division of Global HIV/TB, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Harare, Zimbabwe
| | - John H. Rogers
- Division of Global HIV/TB, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Harare, Zimbabwe
- * E-mail:
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Chamberlin S, Mphande M, Phiri K, Kalande P, Dovel K. How HIV Clients Find Their Way Back to the ART Clinic: A Qualitative Study of Disengagement and Re-engagement with HIV Care in Malawi. AIDS Behav 2022; 26:674-685. [PMID: 34403022 PMCID: PMC8840926 DOI: 10.1007/s10461-021-03427-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Retention in antiretroviral therapy (ART) services is critical to achieving positive health outcomes for individuals living with HIV, but accumulating evidence indicates that individuals are likely to miss ART appointments over time. Thus, it is important to understand why individuals miss appointments and how they re-engage in HIV care. We used in-depth interviews with 44 ART clients in Malawi who recently missed an ART appointment (> 14 days) but eventually re-engaged in care (within 60 days) to explore reasons for missed appointments and barriers and facilitators to re-engagement. We found that most individuals missed ART appointments due to unexpected life events such as funerals, work, and illness for both clients and their treatment guardians who were also unable to attend facilities. Several reasons differed by gender-work-related travel was common for men, while caring for sick family members was common for women. Barriers to re-engagement included continued travel, illness, and restricted clinic schedules and/or staff shortages that led to repeat facility visits before being able to re-engage in care. Strong internal motivation combined with social support and reminders from community health workers facilitated re-engagement in HIV care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie Chamberlin
- Department of Health and Behavioral Sciences, University of Colorado Denver, Campus Box 188, P.O. Box 173364, Denver, CO, 80217-3364, USA.
| | | | - Khumbo Phiri
- Partners in Hope Medical Center, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | | | - Kathryn Dovel
- Partners in Hope Medical Center, Lilongwe, Malawi
- Department of Medicine and Division of Infectious Diseases, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Agyemang EA, Kim AA, Dobbs T, Zungu I, Payne D, Maher AD, Curran K, Kim E, Kwalira H, Limula H, Adhikari A, Welty S, Kandulu J, Nyirenda R, Auld AF, Rutherford GW, Parekh BS. Performance of a novel rapid test for recent HIV infection among newly-diagnosed pregnant adolescent girls and young women in four high-HIV-prevalence districts-Malawi, 2017-2018. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0262071. [PMID: 35148312 PMCID: PMC8836306 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0262071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2020] [Accepted: 12/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Tests for recent HIV infection (TRI) distinguish recent from long-term HIV infections using markers of antibody maturation. The limiting antigen avidity enzyme immunoassay (LAg EIA) is widely used with HIV viral load (VL) in a recent infection testing algorithm (RITA) to improve classification of recent infection status, estimate population-level HIV incidence, and monitor trends in HIV transmission. A novel rapid test for recent HIV infection (RTRI), Asanté™, can determine HIV serostatus and HIV recency within minutes on a lateral flow device through visual assessment of test strip or reader device. We conducted a field-based laboratory evaluation of the RTRI among pregnant adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) attending antenatal clinics (ANC) in Malawi.We enrolled pregnant AGYW aged <25 years testing HIV-positive for the first time at their first ANC visit from 121 ANCs in four high-HIV burden districts. Consenting participants provided blood for recency testing using LAg EIA and RTRI, which were tested in central laboratories. Specimens with LAg EIA normalized optical density values ≤2.0 were classified as probable recent infections. RTRI results were based on: (1) visual assessment: presence of a long-term line (LT) indicating non-recent infection and absence of the line indicating recent infection; or (2) a reader; specimens with LT line intensity units <3.0 were classified as probable recent infections. VL was measured for specimens classified as a probable recent infections by either assay; those with HIV-1 RNA ≥1,000 copies/mL were classified as confirmed recent infections. We evaluated the performance of the RTRI by calculating correlation between RTRI and LAg EIA results, and percent agreement and kappa between RTRI and LAg EIA RITA results.Between November 2017 to June 2018, 380 specimens were available for RTRI evaluation; 376 (98.9%) were confirmed HIV-positive on RTRI. Spearman's rho between RTRI and LAg EIA was 0.72 indicating strong correlation. Percent agreement and kappa between RTRI- and LAg EIA-based RITAs were >90% and >0.65 respectively indicating substantial agreement between the RITAs.This was the first field evaluation of an RTRI in sub-Saharan Africa, which demonstrated good performance of the assay and feasibility of integrating RTRI into routine HIV testing services for real-time surveillance of recent HIV infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elfriede A. Agyemang
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Andrea A. Kim
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Trudy Dobbs
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Innocent Zungu
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Danielle Payne
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Andrew D. Maher
- Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | - Kathryn Curran
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Evelyn Kim
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | | | - Henry Limula
- Ministry of Health and Population, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Amitabh Adhikari
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
| | - Susie Welty
- Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | | | | | - Andrew F. Auld
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - George W. Rutherford
- Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | - Bharat S. Parekh
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, United States of America
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Burke VM, Frimpong C, Miti S, Mwansa JK, Abrams EA, Merrill KG, Denison JA. "It must start with me, so it started with me": A qualitative study of Project YES! youth peer mentor implementing experiences supporting adolescents and young adults living with HIV in Ndola, Zambia. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0261948. [PMID: 35113861 PMCID: PMC8812956 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Little is known about youth-led approaches to addressing HIV-related outcomes among adolescents and young adults (AYA) living with HIV. In response, Project YES! hired and trained youth living with HIV as peer mentors (YPMs) in four HIV clinics in Ndola, Zambia to hold meetings with 276 15-24-year-olds living with HIV. Within this randomized controlled trial, a qualitative sub-study was conducted to explore YPMs' implementing experiences. METHODS In-depth interviews were conducted with the eight YPMs (50% female) ages 21-26 years. YPMs were asked about their experiences working with clients, their feedback on program components, and what the experience meant to them personally and professionally. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and thematic analysis was performed. RESULTS YPMs connected with AYA clients by discussing shared struggles, modeling positive health behaviors, and establishing judgement-free environments. YPMs experienced powerful personal transformations in HIV-related health behaviors, conceptions of self, and plans for the future. Many expressed now seeing themselves as community leaders-"ambassadors", "game changers"-and "not just alone in this world." They described newfound commitments to reaching personal and professional goals. YPMs were adamant that Project YES! should expand so other HIV-positive AYA might benefit. CONCLUSION Well-trained and compensated YPMs who are integrated into HIV clinics can support AYA in unique and important ways due to their shared experiences. The transformational experience of becoming YPMs empowers youth to see themselves as role models and leaders. Future programs should engage youth living with HIV as partners in efforts to end the HIV epidemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virginia M. Burke
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | | | - Sam Miti
- Arthur Davison Children’s Hospital, Ndola, Zambia
| | | | - Elizabeth A. Abrams
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Katherine G. Merrill
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Julie A. Denison
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
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Waruru A, Onyango D, Nyagah L, Sila A, Waruiru W, Sava S, Oele E, Nyakeriga E, Muuo SW, Kiboye J, Musingila PK, van der Sande MAB, Massawa T, Rogena EA, DeCock KM, Young PW. Leading causes of death and high mortality rates in an HIV endemic setting (Kisumu county, Kenya, 2019). PLoS One 2022; 17:e0261162. [PMID: 35051186 PMCID: PMC8775329 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2020] [Accepted: 11/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In resource-limited settings, underlying causes of death (UCOD) often are not ascertained systematically, leading to unreliable mortality statistics. We reviewed medical charts to establish UCOD for decedents at two high volume mortuaries in Kisumu County, Kenya, and compared ascertained UCOD to those notified to the civil registry. METHODS Medical experts trained in COD certification examined medical charts and ascertained causes of death for 456 decedents admitted to the mortuaries from April 16 through July 12, 2019. Decedents with unknown HIV status or who had tested HIV-negative >90 days before the date of death were tested for HIV. We calculated annualized all-cause and cause-specific mortality rates grouped according to global burden of disease (GBD) categories and separately for deaths due to HIV/AIDS and expressed estimated deaths per 100,000 population. We compared notified to ascertained UCOD using Cohen's Kappa (κ) and assessed for the independence of proportions using Pearson's chi-squared test. FINDINGS The four leading UCOD were HIV/AIDS (102/442 [23.1%]), hypertensive disease (41/442 [9.3%]), other cardiovascular diseases (23/442 [5.2%]), and cancer (20/442 [4.5%]). The all-cause mortality rate was 1,086/100,000 population. The highest cause-specific mortality was in GBD category II (noncommunicable diseases; 516/100,000), followed by GBD I (communicable, perinatal, maternal, and nutritional; 513/100,000), and III (injuries; 56/100,000). The HIV/AIDS mortality rate was 251/100,000 population. The proportion of deaths due to GBD II causes was higher among females (51.9%) than male decedents (42.1%; p = 0.039). Conversely, more men/boys (8.6%) than women/girls (2.1%) died of GBD III causes (p = 0.002). Most of the records with available recorded and ascertained UCOD (n = 236), 167 (70.8%) had incorrectly recorded UCOD, and agreement between notified and ascertained UCOD was poor (29.2%; κ = 0.26). CONCLUSIONS Mortality from infectious diseases, especially HIV/AIDS, is high in Kisumu County, but there is a shift toward higher mortality from noncommunicable diseases, possibly reflecting an epidemiologic transition and improving HIV outcomes. The epidemiologic transition suggests the need for increased focus on controlling noncommunicable conditions despite the high communicable disease burden. The weak agreement between notified and ascertained UCOD could lead to substantial inaccuracies in mortality statistics, which wholly depend on death notifications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony Waruru
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Dickens Onyango
- Kisumu County Department of Health, Kisumu, Kenya
- Department of Public Health, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium
- Julius Global Health, Julius Centre for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Centre, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Lilly Nyagah
- Ministry of Health, National AIDS and STI Control Programme, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Alex Sila
- Global Programs for Research and Training, Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | - Solomon Sava
- Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital, Kisumu, Kenya
| | | | | | - Sheru W. Muuo
- Global Programs for Research and Training, Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | - Paul K. Musingila
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Marianne A. B. van der Sande
- Department of Public Health, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium
- Julius Global Health, Julius Centre for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Centre, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | | | - Emily A. Rogena
- Department of Human Pathology, School of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Kevin M. DeCock
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Peter W. Young
- Division of Global HIV and TB, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nairobi, Kenya
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Leddy AM, Gottert A, Haberland N, Hove J, West RL, Pettifor A, Lippman SA, Kahn K, Mathebula R, Rebombo D, Gómez-Olivé X, Twine R, Peacock D, Pulerwitz J. Shifting gender norms to improve HIV service uptake: Qualitative findings from a large-scale community mobilization intervention in rural South Africa. PLoS One 2022; 16:e0260425. [PMID: 34972113 PMCID: PMC8719658 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Interventions to improve HIV service uptake are increasingly addressing inequitable and restrictive gender norms. Yet comparatively little is known about which gender norms are most salient for HIV testing and treatment and how changing these specific norms translates into HIV service uptake. To explore these questions, we implemented a qualitative study during a community mobilization trial targeting social barriers to HIV service uptake in South Africa. Methods We conducted 55 in-depth interviews in 2018, during the final months of a three-year intervention in rural Mpumalanga province. Participants included 25 intervention community members (48% women) and 30 intervention staff/community-opinion-leaders (70% women). Data were analyzed using an inductive-deductive approach. Results We identified three avenues for gender norms change which, when coupled with other strategies, were described to support HIV service uptake: (1) Challenging norms around male toughness/avoidance of help-seeking, combined with information on the health and preventive benefits of early antiretroviral therapy (ART), eased men’s fears of a positive diagnosis and facilitated HIV service uptake. (2) Challenging norms about men’s expected control over women, combined with communication and conflict resolution skill-building, encouraged couple support around HIV service uptake. (3) Challenging norms around women being solely responsible for the family’s health, combined with information about sero-discordance and why both members of the couple should be tested, encouraged men to test for HIV rather than relying on their partner’s results. Facility-level barriers such as long wait times continued to prevent some men from accessing care. Conclusions Despite continued facility-level barriers, we found that promoting critical reflection around several specific gender norms, coupled with information (e.g., benefits of ART) and skill-building (e.g., communication), were perceived to support men’s and women’s engagement in HIV services. There is a need to identify and tailor programming around specific gender norms that hinder HIV service uptake.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna M. Leddy
- Division of Prevention Science, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | - Ann Gottert
- Population Council/Project SOAR, Washington, DC and New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Nicole Haberland
- Population Council/Project SOAR, Washington, DC and New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Jennifer Hove
- MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Rebecca L. West
- Division of Prevention Science, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States of America
| | - Audrey Pettifor
- MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States of America
| | - Sheri A. Lippman
- Division of Prevention Science, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States of America
- MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Kathleen Kahn
- MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | | | - Xavier Gómez-Olivé
- MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Rhian Twine
- MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Dean Peacock
- Promundo, Washington, D.C., United States of America
| | - Julie Pulerwitz
- Population Council/Project SOAR, Washington, DC and New York, NY, United States of America
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Lucas T, Cooney C, Prainito A, Godfrey C, Kiggundu V, Thomas AG, Ridzon R, Toledo C. Consolidated Overview of Notifiable Adverse Events in the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief's Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision Program Through 2020. Curr HIV/AIDS Rep 2022; 19:508-515. [PMID: 36348185 PMCID: PMC9643893 DOI: 10.1007/s11904-022-00636-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Through December 2020, the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) supported more than 25 million voluntary medical male circumcisions (VMMC) as part of the combined HIV prevention strategy in 15 African countries. PEPFAR monitors defined adverse events (AEs) occurring within 30 days of VMMC through its notifiable adverse event reporting system (NAERS). All NAERS reports through December 2020 were reviewed to quantify AE type, severity, and relation to the VMMC procedure. Interventions to improve client safety based on NAERS findings are described. RECENT FINDINGS Fourteen countries reported 446 clients with notifiable adverse events (NAEs); 394/446 (88%) were determined VMMC-related, representing approximately 18 NAE reports per million circumcisions. Fatalities comprised 56/446 (13%) with 24/56 (43%) of fatalities determined VMMC-related, representing 0.96 VMMC-related fatalities per million circumcisions. The remaining 390 NAEs were non-fatal with 370/390 (95%) VMMC-related. Multiple programmatic changes have been made based on NAERS data to improve client safety. Client safety is paramount in this surgical program designed for individual and population-level benefit. Surveillance of rare but severe complications following circumcision has identified pre-existing or new safety concerns and guided continuous programmatic improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Todd Lucas
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Global HIV and TB, HIV Prevention Branch, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Caroline Cooney
- U.S. Department of State, Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and Health Diplomacy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Amber Prainito
- U.S. Department of State, Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and Health Diplomacy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Catherine Godfrey
- U.S. Department of State, Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and Health Diplomacy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Valerian Kiggundu
- U.S. Agency for International Development, Global Health, Office of HIV/AIDS, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Anne Goldzier Thomas
- U.S. Department of Defense HIV/AIDS Prevention Program, Defense Health Agency, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Renee Ridzon
- U.S. Department of State, Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and Health Diplomacy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Carlos Toledo
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Global HIV and TB, HIV Prevention Branch, Atlanta, GA, USA
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Williams D, MacKellar D, Dlamini M, Byrd J, Dube L, Mndzebele P, Mazibuko S, Ao T, Pathmanathan I, Beyer A, Ryan C. HIV testing and ART initiation among partners, family members, and high-risk associates of index clients participating in the CommLink linkage case management program, Eswatini, 2016-2018. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0261605. [PMID: 34928998 PMCID: PMC8687549 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2020] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
To help diagnose and initiate antiretroviral therapy (ART) for ≥95% of all persons living with HIV (PLHIV), the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends offering HIV testing to biological children, and sexual and needle-sharing partners of all PLHIV (index-client testing, ICT). Many index clients, however, do not identify or have contactable partners, and often substantially fewer than 95% of HIV-positive partners initiate ART soon after index testing. To help improve early HIV diagnosis and ART initiation in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), we implemented a community-based HIV testing and peer-delivered, linkage case management program (CommLink) that provided ICT as part of a comprehensive package of WHO recommended linkage services. CommLink was implemented June 2015 -March 2017 (Phase I), and April 2017 -September 2018 (Phase II). In addition to biological children and partners, HIV testing was offered to adult family members (Phases I and II) and high-risk associates including friends and acquaintances (Phase II) of CommLink index clients. Compared with Phase I, in Phase II proportionally more CommLink clients disclosed their HIV-infection status to a partner or family member [94% (562/598) vs. 75% (486/652)], and had ≥1 partners, family members, or high-risk associates (contacts) tested through CommLink [41% (245/598) vs. 18% (117/652)]. Of 537 contacts tested, 253 (47%) were HIV-positive and not currently in HIV care, including 17% (17/100) of family members aged <15 years, 42% (78/187) of non-partner family members aged ≥15 years, 60% (73/121) of sexual partners, and 66% (85/129) of high-risk associates. Among 210 HIV-positive contacts aged ≥15 years who participated in CommLink, nearly all received recommended linkage services including treatment navigation (95%), weekly telephone follow-up (93%), and ≥3 counseling sessions (94%); peer counselors resolved 76% (306/404) of identified barriers to care (e.g., perceived wellness); and 200 (95%) initiated ART at a healthcare facility, of whom 196 (98%) received at least one antiretroviral refill before case-management services ended. To help countries achieve ≥90% ART coverage among all PLHIV, expanding ICT for adult family members and high-risk associates of index clients, and providing peer-delivered linkage case management for all identified PLHIV, should be considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Williams
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Duncan MacKellar
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Makhosazana Dlamini
- Eswatini Country Program, Population Services International, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Johnita Byrd
- ICF International, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Lenhle Dube
- National AIDS Programme, Eswatini Ministry of Health, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Phumzile Mndzebele
- Eswatini Country Office, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Sikhathele Mazibuko
- Eswatini Country Office, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - Trong Ao
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Ishani Pathmanathan
- Division of Global HIV and TB, Center for Global Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Alysha Beyer
- Abt Associates Inc, Rockville, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Caroline Ryan
- Eswatini Country Office, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mbabane, Eswatini
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Grant-McAuley W, Klock E, Laeyendecker O, Piwowar-Manning E, Wilson E, Clarke W, Breaud A, Moore A, Ayles H, Kosloff B, Shanaube K, Bock P, Mandla N, van Deventer A, Fidler S, Donnell D, Hayes R, Eshleman SH. Evaluation of multi-assay algorithms for identifying individuals with recent HIV infection: HPTN 071 (PopART). PLoS One 2021; 16:e0258644. [PMID: 34919554 PMCID: PMC8682874 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Background
Assays and multi-assay algorithms (MAAs) have been developed for population-level cross-sectional HIV incidence estimation. These algorithms use a combination of serologic and/or non-serologic biomarkers to assess the duration of infection. We evaluated the performance of four MAAs for individual-level recency assessments.
Methods
Samples were obtained from 220 seroconverters (infected <1 year) and 4,396 non-seroconverters (infected >1 year) enrolled in an HIV prevention trial (HPTN 071 [PopART]); 28.6% of the seroconverters and 73.4% of the non-seroconverters had HIV viral loads ≤400 copies/mL. Samples were tested with two laboratory-based assays (LAg-Avidity, JHU BioRad-Avidity) and a point-of-care assay (rapid LAg). The four MAAs included different combinations of these assays and HIV viral load. Seroconverters on antiretroviral treatment (ART) were identified using a qualitative multi-drug assay.
Results
The MAAs identified between 54 and 100 (25% to 46%) of the seroconverters as recently-infected. The false recent rate of the MAAs for infections >2 years duration ranged from 0.2%-1.3%. The MAAs classified different overlapping groups of individuals as recent vs. non-recent. Only 32 (15%) of the 220 seroconverters were classified as recent by all four MAAs. Viral suppression impacted the performance of the two LAg-based assays. LAg-Avidity assay values were also lower for seroconverters who were virally suppressed on ART compared to those with natural viral suppression.
Conclusions
The four MAAs evaluated varied in sensitivity and specificity for identifying persons infected <1 year as recently infected and classified different groups of seroconverters as recently infected. Sensitivity was low for all four MAAs. These performance issues should be considered if these methods are used for individual-level recency assessments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wendy Grant-McAuley
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Ethan Klock
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Oliver Laeyendecker
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
- Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Estelle Piwowar-Manning
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Ethan Wilson
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - William Clarke
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Autumn Breaud
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Ayana Moore
- FHI360, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Helen Ayles
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Medicine, Lusaka, Zambia
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Barry Kosloff
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Medicine, Lusaka, Zambia
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Kwame Shanaube
- Zambart, University of Zambia School of Medicine, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Peter Bock
- Desmond Tutu TB Center, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Stellenbosch University, Western Cape, South Africa
| | - Nomtha Mandla
- Desmond Tutu TB Center, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Stellenbosch University, Western Cape, South Africa
| | - Anneen van Deventer
- Desmond Tutu TB Center, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Stellenbosch University, Western Cape, South Africa
| | - Sarah Fidler
- Department of Infectious Disease, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Deborah Donnell
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Richard Hayes
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Susan H. Eshleman
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Mabaso M, Maseko G, Sewpaul R, Naidoo I, Jooste S, Takatshana S, Reddy T, Zuma K, Zungu N. Trends and correlates of HIV prevalence among adolescents in South Africa: evidence from the 2008, 2012 and 2017 South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence and Behaviour surveys. AIDS Res Ther 2021; 18:97. [PMID: 34906170 PMCID: PMC8670218 DOI: 10.1186/s12981-021-00422-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 12/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Adolescents are at increased risk of HIV infection compared to other age groups. There is an urgent need for strategic information that will inform programmes to reduce risk and vulnerability to HIV and reverse the pattern of increasing HIV infection as they transition to adulthood. This paper analysed trends and factors associated with HIV prevalence among adolescents in South Africa using the national HIV population-based household surveys conducted in 2008, 2012 and 2017. METHODS All three surveys used a multistage cross-sectional design. A trend analysis was conducted to assess the differences in HIV prevalence and covariates overtime using P-trend Chi-squared statistic. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used to determine factors associated with HIV prevalence. RESULTS Overall there was a significant increase in HIV prevalence among adolescents aged 12-19 years from 3.0% (n = 2892) in 2008 to 3.2% (n = 4829) in 2012 and 4.1% (n = 3937) in 2017 (p = 0.031). The odds of being HIV positive among adolescents aged 12-19 years was significantly higher among females [AOR = 2.24; 95% CI (1.73-2.91); p < 0.001] than males, those residing in KwaZulu-Natal province [AOR = 2.01; 95% CI (1.-3.99); p = 0.027] than Northern Cape, and those who did not attend an educational institution and were unemployed [AOR = 2.66; 95% CI (1.91-3.67); p < 0.001] compared to those attending an educational institution. The odds were significantly lower among Whites [AOR = 0.29; 95% CI (0.09-0.93); p = 0.037], Coloureds [AOR = 0.21; 95% CI (0.11-0.37); p ≤ 0.001] and Indian/Asian [AOR = 0.08; 95% CI (0.02-0.34); p = 0.001] population groups than Black Africans. CONCLUSION The observed increasing trend and gender disparities in HIV prevalence suggests an urgent need for age appropriate and gender specific HIV interventions tailored and targeted at identified drivers of HIV infection among adolescents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Musawenkosi Mabaso
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa.
| | - Goitseone Maseko
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Ronel Sewpaul
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Inbarani Naidoo
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Sean Jooste
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Sinovuyo Takatshana
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Tarylee Reddy
- Biostatistics Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Durban, South Africa
| | - Khangelani Zuma
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Nompumelelo Zungu
- Human and Social Capabilities Research Division, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa
- Department of Psychology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
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50
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Kamanga J, Stankevitz K, Martinez A, Chiegil R, Nyirenda L, Mulenga F, Chen M, Mpofu M, Lubasi S, Bateganya M. Improved HIV case finding among key populations after differentiated data driven community testing approaches in Zambia. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0258573. [PMID: 34855752 PMCID: PMC8638925 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Open Doors, an HIV prevention project targeting key populations in Zambia, recorded low HIV positivity rates (9%) among HIV testing clients, compared to national adult prevalence (12.3%), suggesting case finding efficiency could be improved. To close this gap, they undertook a series of targeted programmatic and management interventions. We share the outcomes of these interventions, specifically changes in testing volume, HIV positivity rate, and total numbers of key populations living with HIV identified. Methods The project implemented a range of interventions to improve HIV case finding using a Total Quality Leadership and Accountability (TQLA) approach. We analyzed program data for key populations who received HIV testing six months before the interventions (October 2017–March 2018) and 12 months after (April 2018–March 2019). Interrupted time series analysis was used to evaluate the impact on HIV positivity and total case finding and trends in positivity and case finding over time, before and after the interventions. Results While the monthly average number of HIV tests performed increased by only 14% post-intervention, the monthly average number of HIV positive individuals identified increased by 290%. The average HIV positivity rate rose from 9.7% to 32.4%. Positivity rates and case finding remained significantly higher in all post-intervention months. Similar trends were observed among FSW and MSM. Conclusions The Open Doors project was able to reach large numbers of previously undiagnosed key populations by implementing a targeted managerial and technical intervention, resulting in a significant increase in the HIV positivity rate sustained over 12 months. These results demonstrate that differentiated, data-driven approaches can help close the 95-95-95 gaps among key populations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kayla Stankevitz
- FHI 360, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | | | - Robert Chiegil
- FHI 360, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | | | | | - Mario Chen
- FHI 360, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
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