COVID-19 Conspiracy Beliefs are not Barriers to HIV Status Neutral Care Among Black Cisgender Sexual Minority Men and Black Transgender Women at the Initial Peak of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Chicago, USA.

We examined associations between COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs and HIV status neutral care engagement among Black cisgender sexual minority men (BCSMM) and Black transgender women (BTW). Throughout April-July 2020, a total of 226 (222 in the current analysis: 196 BCSMM, 20 BTW, and 6 other) participants in Chicago's Neighborhoods and Networks (N2) cohort study completed virtual assessments. Participants reported their HIV status, changes in the frequency of PrEP/ART use, and COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs. Three-quarters of the sample believed at least one conspiracy theory that COVID-19 was either government-created or lab-created accidentally or purposefully. Believing one or more COVID-19 conspiracy theories was significantly associated with better PrEP or ART engagement (using PrEP more frequently or continuously using PrEP/Missing ART less or continuously using ART) (aPR = 0.75 [95% CI 0.56-0.99], p < 0.05). Believing COVID-19 came about naturally was strongly associated with worse PrEP engagement (i.e., use PrEP less or not on PrEP) or worse ART engagement (i.e., missed ART more or not on ART) (aPR = 1.56 [95% CI 1.23, 1.98], p < 0.001). Findings suggested substantial COVID-19 conspiracies among BCSMM and BTW, and this was associated with HIV care engagement.

Sleep Disturbance is Associated with Missing PrEP Doses Among Young Black Sexual Minority Men in The N2 study.

PrEP uptake and adherence among young Black sexual minority men (YBSMM), has been sub-optimal. Multiple studies identified sleep as an important determinant of medication adherence, although it has not been examined with regard to PrEP among YBSMM. This study utilized data collected from HIV-negative cisgender YBSMM in the Neighborhoods and Networks (N2) study in Chicago using PrEP (N = 70). Sleep quality was measured using the PHQ-9 and PrEP adherence questions were adapted from Reynolds et al., 2004. Bivariate and multivariable regression analyses were used to estimate associations between sleep and missing PrEP doses, controlling for relevant demographic and behavioral factors. YBSMM who reported sleep disturbance a moderate amount of time (aOR 7.59 [1.05 to 54.57]) were more likely to miss taking PrEP because they had too many pills to take. Sleep quality is an overlooked determinant of medication adherence, and may negatively impact YBSMM's ability to consistently take PrEP.

A Network Approach to Determine Optimization of PrEP Uptake in Athens, Greece.

Although the HIV epidemic in Athens, Greece has reemerged and spread in men who have sex with men (MSM), state-supported PrEP programs have not been instituted. A PrEP intervention was implemented building upon an existing network cohort of MSM (308 participants; 1212 network members). A PrEP intervention cohort of 106 participants was selected based upon sex behaviors. Individual, partner, and network characteristics were compared between the cohorts. The PrEP cohort members were more highly connected and in more influential positions in the network than their peers. Further, their sexual network connections' behaviors increased their vulnerability to HIV infection relative to the rest of the network's sex partners. This included greater stimulant use (24.2% vs 7.0%; χ2 = 28.2; p < 0.001), greater rates of at least weekly condomless sex (OR = 2.7; 95% CI 2.1-3.5; χ2 = 59.2; p < 0.001) and at least weekly use of drugs or alcohol during sex (OR = 3.4; 95% CI 2.6-4.3; χ2 = 89.7; p < 0.001). Finally the PrEP cohort's social networks showed similarly increased vulnerability to seroconversion, including greater rates of injection drug use (4.1% vs 0.5%; χ2 = 3.9; p = 0.04), greater stimulant use (33.6% vs 14.6%; χ2 = 16.9, p < 0.001), and higher rates of recent STIs (21.6% vs 13.1%; χ2 = 4.4; p = 0.04). Thus, this PrEP intervention engaged individuals in vulnerable positions with vulnerable connections within an MSM community.

Leveraging social networks for identification of people with HIV who are virally unsuppressed.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigates primary peer-referral engagement (PRE) strategies to assess which strategy results in engaging higher numbers of people with HIV (PWH) who are virally unsuppressed. DESIGN: We develop a modeling study that simulates an HIV epidemic (transmission, disease progression, and viral evolution) over 6 years using an agent-based model followed by simulating PRE strategies. We investigate two PRE strategies where referrals are based on social network strategies (SNS) or sexual partner contact tracing (SPCT). METHODS: We parameterize, calibrate, and validate our study using data from Chicago on Black sexual minority men to assess these strategies for a population with high incidence and prevalence of HIV. For each strategy, we calculate the number of PWH recruited who are undiagnosed or out-of-care (OoC) and the number of direct or indirect transmissions. RESULTS: SNS and SPCT identified 256.5 [95% confidence interval (CI) 234-279] and 15 (95% CI 7-27) PWH, respectively. Of these, SNS identified 159 (95% CI 142-177) PWH OoC and 32 (95% CI 21-43) PWH undiagnosed compared with 9 (95% CI 3-18) and 2 (95% CI 0-5) for SPCT. SNS identified 15.5 (95% CI 6-25) and 7.5 (95% CI 2-11) indirect and direct transmission pairs, whereas SPCT identified 6 (95% CI 0-8) and 5 (95% CI 0-8), respectively. CONCLUSION: With no testing constraints, SNS is the more effective strategy to identify undiagnosed and OoC PWH. Neither strategy is successful at identifying sufficient indirect or direct transmission pairs to investigate transmission networks.

Predictors of HIV Molecular Cluster Membership and Implications for Partner Services.

Public health surveillance data used in HIV molecular cluster analyses lack contextual information that is available from partner services (PS) data. Integrating these data sources in retrospective analyses can enrich understanding of the risk profile of people in clusters. In this study, HIV molecular clusters were identified and matched to information on partners and other information gleaned at the time of diagnosis, including coinfection with syphilis. We aimed to produce a more complete understanding of molecular cluster membership in Houston, Texas, a city ranking ninth nationally in rate of new HIV diagnoses that may benefit from retrospective matched analyses between molecular and PS data to inform future intervention. Data from PS were matched to molecular HIV records of people newly diagnosed from 2012 to 2018. By conducting analyses in HIV-TRACE (TRAnsmission Cluster Engine) using viral genetic sequences, molecular clusters were detected. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate the association between molecular cluster membership and completion of a PS interview, number of named partners, and syphilis coinfection. Using data from 4,035 people who had a viral genetic sequence and matched PS records, molecular cluster membership was not significantly associated with completion of a PS interview. Among those with sequences who completed a PS interview (n = 3,869), 45.3% (n = 1,753) clustered. Molecular cluster membership was significantly associated with naming 1 or 3+ partners compared with not naming any partners [adjusted odds ratio, aOR: 1.27 (95% confidence interval, CI: 1.08-1.50), p = .003 and aOR: 1.38 (95% CI: 1.06-1.81), p = .02]. Alone, coinfection with syphilis was not significantly associated with molecular cluster membership. Syphilis coinfection was associated with molecular cluster membership when coupled with incarceration [aOR: 1.91 (95% CI: 1.08-3.38), p = .03], a risk for treatment interruption. Enhanced intervention among those with similar profiles, such as people coinfected with other risks, may be warranted.

Findings From the Step Up, Test Up Study of an Electronic Screening and Brief Intervention for Alcohol Misuse in Adolescents and Young Adults Presenting for HIV Testing: Randomized Controlled Efficacy Trial.

BACKGROUND: Substance use, particularly binge drinking of alcohol and noninjection substance use, is associated with increased risk for HIV infection among youth, but structured substance use screening and brief intervention are not often provided as part of HIV risk reduction. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study was to test the efficacy of a fully automated electronic screening and brief intervention, called Step Up, Test Up, to reduce alcohol misuse among adolescents and young adults presenting for HIV testing. Secondary objectives were reduction in sexual risk and uptake of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention. METHODS: Youth aged 16 years to 25 years who presented for HIV testing at community-based locations were recruited for study participation. Those who screened at moderate to high risk on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test were randomized (1:1) to either an electronic brief intervention or a time-attention control. The primary outcome was change in alcohol use at 1, 3, 6, and 12-month follow-ups. Negative binomial and log binomial regression analyses with generalized estimating equations were conducted to evaluate the intervention efficacy. RESULTS: Among a sample of 329 youth, there were no significant differences in alcohol use outcomes between conditions over time or at the 1, 3, 6, or 12-month time points. In terms of secondary outcomes, there was evidence of reduction in condomless insertive anal sex under the influence of alcohol and drugs at 12 months compared with 3 months in the intervention versus the attention control condition (incidence rate ratio=0.15, 95% CI 0.05-0.44); however, there were no other significant differences in sexual risk and no difference in PrEP engagement. CONCLUSIONS: We found no effect of electronic brief intervention to reduce alcohol use and some effect on sexual risk among youth aged 16 years to 25 years who present for HIV testing. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT02703116; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02703116. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): RR2-10.1186/s12889-020-8154-6.

Impact of molecular sequence data completeness on HIV cluster detection and a network science approach to enhance detection.

Detection of viral transmission clusters using molecular epidemiology is critical to the response pillar of the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative. Here, we studied whether inference with an incomplete dataset would influence the accuracy of the reconstructed molecular transmission network. We analyzed viral sequence data available from ~ 13,000 individuals with diagnosed HIV (2012-2019) from Houston Health Department surveillance data with 53% completeness (n = 6852 individuals with sequences). We extracted random subsamples and compared the resulting reconstructed networks versus the full-size network. Increasing simulated completeness was associated with an increase in the number of detected clusters. We also subsampled based on the network node influence in the transmission of the virus where we measured Expected Force (ExF) for each node in the network. We simulated the removal of nodes with the highest and then lowest ExF from the full dataset and discovered that 4.7% and 60% of priority clusters were detected respectively. These results highlight the non-uniform impact of capturing high influence nodes in identifying transmission clusters. Although increasing sequence reporting completeness is the way to fully detect HIV transmission patterns, reaching high completeness has remained challenging in the real world. Hence, we suggest taking a network science approach to enhance performance of molecular cluster detection, augmented by node influence information.

Identifying influential neighbors in social networks and venue affiliations among young MSM: a data science approach to predict HIV infection.

OBJECTIVE: Young MSM (YMSM) bear a disproportionate burden of HIV infection in the United States and their risks of acquiring HIV may be shaped by complex multilayer social networks. These networks are formed through not only direct contact with social/sex partners but also indirect anonymous contacts encountered when attending social venues. We introduced a new application of a state-of-the-art graph-based deep learning method to predict HIV infection that can identify influential neighbors within these multiple network contexts. DESIGN AND METHODS: We used empirical network data among YMSM aged 16-29 years old collected from Houston and Chicago in the United States between 2014 and 2016. A computational framework GAT-HIV (Graph Attention Networks for HIV) was proposed to predict HIV infections by identifying influential neighbors within social networks. These networks were formed by multiple relations constituted of social/sex partners and shared venue attendances, and using individual-level variables. Further, GAT-HIV was extended to combine multiple social networks using multigraph GAT methods. A visualization tool was also developed to highlight influential network members for each individual within the multiple social networks. RESULTS: The multigraph GAT-HIV models obtained average AUC values of 0.776 and 0.824 for Chicago and Houston, respectively, performing better than empirical predictive models (e.g. AUCs of random forest: 0.758 and 0.798). GAT-HIV on single networks also delivered promising prediction performances. CONCLUSION: The proposed methods provide a comprehensive and interpretable framework for graph-based modeling that may inform effective HIV prevention intervention strategies among populations most vulnerable to HIV.

COVID-19-Related Stressors, Sex Behaviors, and HIV Status Neutral Care Among Black Men Who Have Sex With Men and Transgender Women in Chicago, USA.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted vulnerable populations, including Black men who have sex with men (BMSM) and transgender women (BTW). We investigated associations of COVID-19 stressors and sex behaviors with pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) among BMSM and BTW. METHODS: As part of the Neighborhoods and Networks (N2) study, we conducted virtual interviews during peak COVID-19 infectivity in Chicago among BMSM and BTW (April-July 2020). Survey questions included multilevel COVID-19 stressors, sex behaviors, and current PrEP/ART use and access. Poisson regressions were used to examining relationships between COVID-19 stressors, sex behaviors, and PrEP/ART use/access. RESULTS: Among 222 participants, 31.8% of participants not living with HIV reported current PrEP use and 91.8% of participants living with HIV reported ART use during the pandemic. Most (83.3% and 78.2%, respectively) reported similar or easier PrEP and ART access during the pandemic. Physical stress reaction to COVID-19 [adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] = 2.1; confidence interval (CI): 1.3 to 3.5] and being in close proximity with someone diagnosed with COVID-19 (aPR = 1.7; CI: 1.1 to 2.8) were associated with current PrEP use. Intimate partner violence (aPR = 2.7; CI: 1.0 to 7.2) and losing health insurance (aPR = 3.5; CI: 1.1 to 10.7) were associated with harder ART access. Travel-related financial burden was associated with harder access in PrEP (aPR = 3.2; CI: 1.0 to 10.1) and ART (aPR = 6.2; CI: 1.6 to 24.3). CONCLUSIONS: Multiple COVID-19 stressors were found to interfere with PrEP and ART use and access among BMSM and BTW. Contextually relevant strategies (eg, promoting telehealth and decreasing transportation burden) to address COVID-19 stressors and their sequelae should be considered to minimize disruption in HIV biomedical interventions.

Methodological synthesis of Bayesian phylodynamics, HIV-TRACE, and GEE: HIV-1 transmission epidemiology in a racially/ethnically diverse Southern U.S. context.

This study introduces an innovative methodological approach to identify potential drivers of structuring HIV-1 transmission clustering patterns between different subpopulations in the culturally and racially/ethnically diverse context of Houston, TX, the largest city in the Southern United States. Using 6332 HIV-1 pol sequences from persons newly diagnosed with HIV during the period 2010-2018, we reconstructed HIV-1 transmission clusters, using the HIV-TRAnsmission Cluster Engine (HIV-TRACE); inferred demographic and risk parameters on HIV-1 transmission dynamics by jointly estimating viral transmission rates across racial/ethnic, age, and transmission risk groups; and modeled the degree of network connectivity by using generalized estimating equations (GEE). Our results indicate that Hispanics/Latinos are most vulnerable to the structure of transmission clusters and serve as a bridge population, acting as recipients of transmissions from Whites (3.0 state changes/year) and from Blacks (2.6 state changes/year) as well as sources of transmissions to Whites (1.8 state changes/year) and to Blacks (1.2 state changes/year). There were high rates of transmission and high network connectivity between younger and older Hispanics/Latinos as well as between younger and older Blacks. Prevention and intervention efforts are needed for transmission clusters that involve younger racial/ethnic minorities, in particular Hispanic/Latino youth, to reduce onward transmission of HIV in Houston.