Integrating Gender-Based Violence Screening and Support into the Research Clinic Setting: Experiences from an HIV Prevention Open-Label Extension Trial in Sub-Saharan Africa.

HIV and gender-based violence (GBV) are syndemic in sub-Saharan Africa and provision of support for participants who disclose GBV constitutes part of comprehensive care. Consequently, a process was undertaken to develop, implement, and evaluate standard operating procedures (SOPs) in MTN-025/HOPE, a study of the dapivirine vaginal ring for HIV prevention. The SOP was developed using needs assessment surveys in addition to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines and other literature. Sites tailored and implemented the SOP through HOPE implementation. At study end, staff reported increased training 32/35 (91.43%); improved confidence (18/26; 69.23%); and improved vicarious trauma prevention onsite (17/28; 60.71%). Leadership reported increased staff competence in GBV response. Obstacles included limited referral organizations and time for follow-up, continued training needs, and cultural norms. Development and implementation of an SOP is a feasible strategy to build a GBV response to improve health systems and support sustained effective use of HIV prevention products.

Strategies implemented for accurate dispensing of an investigational new drug in a multi-site HIV prevention clinical trial.

Safe practices for dispensing investigational product (IP) during clinical trials are not standardized and information in this regard is often limited. ASPIRE was a Phase 3 safety and effectiveness trial of a vaginal matrix ring containing 25 mg of dapivirine for the prevention of HIV-1 in women. The study enrolled 2629 women at 15 clinical research sites in Malawi, Uganda, South Africa and Zimbabwe who were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive either a vaginal ring containing 25 mg of dapivirine or a matching placebo vaginal ring. The vaginal rings and packaging were identical in appearance in order to maintain the study blind. A real-time, documented second check of the dispensing process was conducted by a second pharmacy staff. Frequent inventory counts and real time accountability audits were also useful for rapidly identifying a dispensing error. A total of 52,625 vaginal rings were dispensed with only three documented pharmacy dispensing errors. There were zero dispensing errors at 13 of the 15 sites with an overall rate of <1.0 per 10,000 rings dispensed. Our study findings support the implementation of a double check dispensing process and real time accountability audits as standard practice in clinical trials.

Impact of Partner-Related Social Harms on Women's Adherence to the Dapivirine Vaginal Ring During a Phase III Trial.

BACKGROUND: Long-acting female-initiated methods such as the dapivirine ring may give women greater agency in HIV-1 prevention. However, social harms, defined as nonmedical adverse consequences of study participation or dapivirine ring use, may reduce product adherence and consequently HIV-1 protection. METHODS: We assessed whether experiencing social harms from male partners was associated with lower adherence to the dapivirine ring in the MTN-020/ASPIRE trial. Reports of social harms were solicited quarterly. Low adherence was defined by plasma dapivirine levels ≤95 pg/mL or residual dapivirine levels in returned rings >23.5 mg. RESULTS: Among 2629 women enrolled in ASPIRE, 85 (3.2%) reported 87 social harms during a median follow-up of 1.6 years. Women were significantly more likely to have low adherence, measured by plasma dapivirine levels, at visits with a social harm in the past month than at visits where no social harm was reported (adjusted risk ratio 2.53, 95% confidence interval: 1.37 to 4.66, P = 0.003). There was no association for social harms reported ≥1 month prior, suggesting an acute, short-term effect. Women were significantly more likely to not return a ring at visits with a social harm reported (adjusted risk ratio 24.70, 95% confidence interval: 18.57 to 32.85, P < 0.001). In rings that were returned, social harms were not associated with residual dapivirine levels. CONCLUSIONS: Although social harms were uncommon (<5% of women with >1 year of use), participants reporting social harms by male partners had lower adherence to the dapivirine ring. Strategies to mitigate nonadherence to product use related to social harms should be evaluated in future studies of female-controlled HIV-1 prevention options.