Preexposure Prophylaxis Outcomes in an Urban Community in North Carolina: Discontinuation of Care and Sexually Transmitted Infections.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have examined long-term outcomes among persons who initiate preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in the South, including PrEP discontinuation and sexually transmitted infection (STI) rates. METHODS: Care discontinuation (>6 months without a PrEP appointment) and incident STIs were evaluated for patients at 2 PrEP clinics in Durham, NC. We tested for predictors of discontinuation as a binary variable using logistic regression. Model covariates included age, race/ethnicity, sex, known HIV-positive partner, commercial sex work, men who have sex with men (MSM) versus not MSM, type of insurance, and clinic site. A similar analysis was completed for STI incidence, controlling for days in the study. RESULTS: Among 271 patients, mean age was 33.2 years, 46.9% were Black and 11.1% were Latino, 81.2% were MSM, and 32% were uninsured. Preexposure prophylaxis was discontinued in 47%, and another 11% had intermittent care. Sexually transmitted infection incidence was 45.4/100 person-years, and 5 patients were diagnosed with HIV at baseline or in follow-up. Men who have sex with men were less likely to discontinue PrEP relative to non-MSM (odds ratio [OR], 0.26; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.10-0.64). Baseline STI was associated with a higher likelihood of incident STI (OR, 8.19; 95% CI, 3.69-19.21), whereas care discontinuation was associated with a lower likelihood of STI (OR, 0.28; 95% CI, 0.11-0.65). CONCLUSIONS: Preexposure prophylaxis programs in the Southern United States are reaching uninsured and predominantly Black and Latino MSM, but discontinuation rates are high despite elevated rates of incident STI and HIV. Further work is required to elucidate causes of PrEP discontinuation and encourage persistence in care.

Advancing the HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Continuum: A Collaboration Between a Public Health Department and a Federally Qualified Health Center in the Southern United States.

Uptake of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been limited among black and Latino men who have sex with men (MSM), especially in the southern United States. Public health departments and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) serving predominantly uninsured populations are uniquely positioned to improve access. We evaluated a novel PrEP collaboration between a public health department and an FQHC in North Carolina (NC). In May 2015, a PrEP program was initiated that included no-cost HIV/sexually transmitted infection screening at a public health department, followed by referral to a colocated FQHC for PrEP services. We profiled the PrEP continuum for patients entering the program until February 2018. PrEP initiators and noninitiators were compared using Wilcoxon rank-sum test for continuous variables and chi-square or Fisher's exact tests for categorical variables. Of 196 patients referred to the FQHC, 60% attended an initial appointment, 43% filled a prescription, 38% persisted in care for >3 months, and 30% reported >90% adherence at follow-up. Among those presenting for initial appointments (n = 117), most were MSM (n = 95, 81%) and black (n = 62, 53%); 21 (18%) were Latinx and 9 (8%) were trans persons. Almost half (n = 55) were uninsured. We found statistically significant differences between PrEP initiators versus noninitiators based on race/ethnicity (p = 0.02), insurance status (p = 0.05), and history of sex work (p = 0.05). In conclusion, this collaborative model of PrEP care was able to reach predominantly black and Latino MSM in the southern United States. Although sustainable, program strategies to improve steps along the PrEP care continuum are vital in this population.

Assessing Patient Opinions About Electronic Messaging for Gonorrhea and Chlamydia Result Notification and Partner Services, Durham, North Carolina.

Text or e-mail messages can provide timely notification of sexually transmitted disease results to patients. We assessed sexually transmitted disease clinic patient opinions about text/e-mail notification via a service called Chexout. Among 113 patients who opted in, the majority found results notification via texts/e-mails to be satisfactory (99.0%) and easy (92.9%).