Willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine among HIV positive men who have sex with men in China: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: People living with HIV(PLWH) are deemed more vulnerable to the SARS-CoV-2 infection than the uninfected population. Vaccination is an effective measure for COVID-19 control, yet, little knowledge exists about the willingness of men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV in China to be vaccinated. METHODS: This cross-sectional study evaluated the willingness of MSM living with HIV to receive COVID-19 vaccination in six cities of Guangdong, China, from July to September 2020. Factors associated with willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccination using multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: In total, we recruited 944 HIV-positive MSM with a mean age of 29.2 ± 7.7 years. Of all participants, 92.4% of them were willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Participants who were separated, divorced, or widowed (adjusted OR: 5.29, 95%CI: 1.02-27.48), had an annual income higher than 9,000 USD (adjusted OR: 1.70, 95%CI: 1.01-2.86), had ever taken an HIV self-test (adjusted OR: 1.78, 95%CI: 1.07-2.95), had ever disclosed sexual orientation to a doctor/nurse (adjusted OR: 3.16, 95%CI: 1.33-7.50), had ever disclosed sexual orientation to others besides their male partners (adjusted OR: 2.18, 95%CI: 1.29-3.69) were more willing to receive the vaccine. Sex with a female partner in the past six months decreased the likelihood of willingness to receive the vaccine (adjusted OR: 0.40, 95%CI: 0.17-0.95). Economic burden, worry that my health condition could not bear the risk of receiving COVID-19 vaccines, and concern that the vaccination would affect the immune status and antiretroviral therapy were the main reasons for unwillingness to receive vaccination. CONCLUSION: Our study showed that HIV-positive MSM had a high willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. Targeted interventions such as health education should be conducted among MSM with HIV infection to enhance COVID-19 vaccine uptake.

Facilitators and Barriers of HIV Partner Notification Services Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Qualitative Analysis Using a Socioecological Framework.

BACKGROUND: HIV partner notification services (HIV PS) have been poorly implemented in most low- and middle-income countries, including China. Understanding the social context of partner services for key populations is important for scaling up HIV testing services. This study aims to examine facilitators and barriers of HIV PS using qualitative analysis. METHODS: This article qualitatively analyzed the texts obtained from a crowdsourcing open call and adopted the socioecological framework to understand the social context of Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV that influenced their uptake of HIV partner services. Crowdsourcing means collecting ideas from and sharing solutions with the public. The open call was held to solicit ideas to enhance HIV partner services for Chinese MSM. Two coders conducted a content analysis of the texts from the submissions using inductive and deductive coding methods to identify facilitators and barriers of HIV PS. RESULTS: Textual data from 53 submissions were analyzed. The most mentioned barrier, stigma associated with HIV PS, was deeply embedded at several levels, highlighting the urgent need for stigma reduction. Among the facilitators, many people mentioned anonymous online notification could protect the privacy and avoid social harm for index partners. Differentiated partner services may improve HIV PS uptake by providing tailored intervention according to the individual circumstances. Some people suggested implicit notification, which meant testing the attitude of the partner before direct disclosure. This was feasible and acceptable in many settings. CONCLUSIONS: The unique social context of MSM living with HIV provides opportunities for embedding HIV partner services. More clinical trials that test the acceptability and effectiveness of the HIV PS interventions are needed.

Formation of Volatile and Aroma Compounds during the Dehydration of Membrane-Clarified Sugarcane Juice to Non-Centrifugal Sugar.

The development of volatile compounds and their precursors during the dehydration process of membrane-clarified sugarcane juice to non-centrifugal sugar (NCS) was investigated. Head-space solid phase microextraction/gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-MS) coupled with chemometrics was employed to assess the differences at the various stages of the dehydration process. A total of 111 volatile compounds were identified, among which 57 were endogenous compounds from sugarcane juice and displayed an attenuated abundance in the first 30 min. Typical oxygen and nitrogen heterocyclic compounds, including furans and pyrazines, and aldehydes derived were found to be the main volatiles contributing to the formation of NCS characteristic aroma, with phenols, alcohols, esters, acids, and sulfur compounds as supplementary odor. Free amino acids and reducing sugars were identified as important precursors for the aroma development process. The low temperature (90-108 °C) and micro vacuum condition (-0.03 MPa) approach used in this study could be an alternative option for the manufacture of NCS.

Adolescent and non-consensual anal sexual debut among Chinese men who have sex with men: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Adolescent sexual debut and non-consensual sex have been linked to higher sexual risk and STI infection in adulthood among men who have sex with men (MSM) in high-income countries. This study aimed to examine adolescent and non-consensual anal sexual debut among Chinese MSM and to evaluate factors associated with adolescent sexual debut and non-consensual anal sex. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted recently among Chinese men assigned male sex at birth, ≥18 years old, and who had ever engaged in anal sex with a man. Participants answered questions regarding socio-demographics, condomless sex, age at anal sexual debut with a man, and whether the first anal sex was consensual. Factors associated with an adolescent sexual debut (< 18 years old) and non-consensual sex at sexual debut were evaluated. We defined adolescent sexual debut as having anal sex with another man at 17 years old or younger, and the participants were asked whether their first male-to-male anal sex was non-consensual. RESULTS: Overall, 2031 eligible men completed the survey. The mean age of sexual debut was 20.7 (SD = 4.3) years old. 17.6% (358/2031) of men reported adolescent sexual debut, and 5.0% (101/2031) reported a non-consensual sexual debut. The adolescent sexual debut was associated with having more male sexual partners (adjusted OR 1.10, 95% CI 1.06-1.15) and condomless anal sex in the last three months (AOR = 1.71, 95% CI 1.34-2.18). MSM whose sexual debut was non-consensual were more likely to have condomless anal sex (AOR = 1.76, 95% CI 1.17-2.66), and to have reported an adolescent sexual debut (AOR = 2.72, 95% CI 1.75-4.21). CONCLUSIONS: Many Chinese MSM reported adolescent sexual debut and non-consensual sex, both of which are associated with sexual risk behaviors and drive STI transmission. These findings highlight the need for designing tailored interventions for MSM who experienced adolescent sexual debut and non-consensual sex at debut.

Life-course blood pressure trajectories and cardiovascular diseases: A population-based cohort study in China.

BACKGROUND: The patterns of blood pressure trajectory (i.e., change over time) over life-course remain to be explored. In this study, we aim to determine the trajectories of systolic blood pressure (SBP) from adulthood to late life and to assess its impact on the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). METHODS: Based on the China Health and Nutrition Survey, a total of 3566 participants aged 20-50 years at baseline (1989) with at least three SBP measurements during 1989-2011 were included. SBP was measured through physical examination, and socio-demographic factors, lifestyles, medications, and CVDs were based on self-reported questionnaire. Latent class growth modeling was performed to examine SBP trajectory. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) from logistic regression was used to determine the association between SBP trajectory and CVDs. RESULTS: Five trajectory groups of SBP were identified: Class 1: rapid increase (n = 113, 3.2%); Class 2: slight increase (n = 1958, 54.9%); Class 3: stable (n = 614, 17.2%); Class 4: increase (n = 800, 22.4%); Class 5: fluctuant (n = 81, 2.3%). After adjustment of demographic factors, baseline SBP, and lifestyles, compared with the "slight increase" group, the OR (95% CI) of CVDs was 0.65 (0.32, 1.28) for "stable" group, 2.24 (1.40, 3.58) for "increase" group, 3.95 (1.81, 8.62) for "rapid increase" group, and 4.32 (1.76, 10.57) for "fluctuant" group. After stratified by use of antihypertensive drugs, the association was only significant for "rapid increase" group among those using antihypertensive drugs with OR (95% CI) of 2.81 (1.01, 7.77). CONCLUSIONS: Having a rapidly increasing SBP over life-course is associated with a higher risk of CVDs. This implies the importance of monitoring lifetime change of blood pressure for the prevention of CVDs.