Prevalence and Predictors of Uncircumcised, Kenyan Men's Desire for Circumcision for Their Infant Sons.

Men are key decision makers for their son's circumcision, so understanding their beliefs is important for the uptake of early infant male circumcision in countries in sub-Saharan Africa that have high HIV prevalence. We analyzed men's preferences for circumcising their sons using data from a population-representative survey of 1501 uncircumcised men aged 25-49 years in western Kenya. Most men (59%) reported they would "definitely" want their son circumcised if a son was born to them within the next year. However, only 25% intended to become circumcised themselves. In multivariable Poisson regression models to estimate prevalence ratios, key predictors of the desire to circumcise their sons included knowledge that circumcision reduces HIV acquisition, having a supportive partner, discussing circumcision with the partner, altruism, and intention to be circumcised himself. Focusing on partner dynamics may have the greatest capacity to increase demand since 55% had not talked to their partner about circumcision.

Effect of providing conditional economic compensation on uptake of voluntary medical male circumcision in Kenya: a randomized clinical trial.

IMPORTANCE: Novel strategies are needed to increase the uptake of voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) in sub-Saharan Africa and enhance the effectiveness of male circumcision as an HIV prevention strategy. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether small economic incentives could increase circumcision prevalence by addressing reported economic barriers to VMMC and behavioral factors such as present-biased decision making. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Randomized clinical trial conducted between June 22, 2013, and February 4, 2014, among 1504 uncircumcised men aged 25 to 49 years in Nyanza region, Kenya. VMMC services were provided free of charge and participants were randomized to 1 of 3 intervention groups or a control group. INTERVENTIONS: Participants in the 3 intervention groups received varying amounts of compensation conditional on undergoing circumcision at 1 of 9 study clinics within 2 months of enrollment. Compensation took the form of food vouchers worth 200 Kenya shillings (≈ US $2.50), 700 Kenya shillings (≈ US $8.75), or 1200 Kenya shillings (≈ US $15.00), which reflected a portion of transportation costs and lost wages associated with getting circumcised. The control group received no compensation. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: VMMC uptake within 2 months. RESULTS: Analysis of data for 1502 participants with complete data showed that VMMC uptake within 2 months was higher in the US $8.75 group (6.6%; 95% CI, 4.3%-9.5% [25 of 381]) and the US $15.00 group (9.0%; 95% CI, 6.3%-12.4% [34 of 377]) than in the US $2.50 group (1.9%; 95% CI, 0.8%-3.8% [7 of 374]) and the control group (1.6%; 95% CI, 0.6%-3.5% [6 of 370]). In logistic regression analysis, the US $8.75 group had significantly higher VMMC uptake than the control group (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 4.3; 95% CI, 1.7-10.7), as did the US $15.00 group (AOR 6.2; 95% CI, 2.6-15.0). Effect sizes for the US $8.75 and US $15.00 groups did not differ significantly (P = .20). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Among uncircumcised men in Kenya, compensation in the form of food vouchers worth approximately US $8.75 or US $15.00, compared with lesser or no compensation, resulted in a modest increase in the prevalence of circumcision after 2 months. The effects of more intense promotion or longer implementation require further investigation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01857700.

Preferred HIV Testing Modalities Among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in Kenya.

PURPOSE: To improve testing coverage, it is imperative to determine adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) preferences about HIV testing modality and where they prefer receiving services. METHODS: Participants were enrolled between May 2017 and April 2018 from three sites in Homa Bay County, Nyanza region, western Kenya. We explored two recruitment approaches (home-based vs. mobile-event based) and three HIV testing options (oral self-test, staff-administered, or referral to health facility). Exact logistic regression compared yield of newly diagnosed HIV and high-risk HIV-negatives from the recruitment and testing option strategies. RESULTS: A total of 1,198 participants were enrolled, 1,046 (87.3%) at home and 152 (12.7%) at mobile events. Most participants (928, 77.5%) chose staff-aided testing either at home or at a mobile event; 268 (22.4%) chose self-testing; and only 2 (.2%) chose facility referral. Prevalence of newly diagnosed HIV-positives was 2.7% (32/1,198) and 36.8% (429/1,166) of HIV-negative AGYW were identified as high risk. We identified more newly diagnosed HIV infection among AGYW recruited at mobile events than at home (OR = 3.11; 95% CI: 1.33-6.74; p = .02). High-risk status was related to neither recruitment strategy nor testing modality. Older age was associated with increased odds of selecting an oral self-test (OR = 1.85; 95% CI: 1.06-3.22). CONCLUSIONS: More than one-third of AGYW were at elevated risk of HIV infection, and those unaware of their HIV infection were more likely to be identified at a mobile outreach. Though self-testing was not the dominant preferred strategy, self-tests were performed accurately and with high confidence. These findings can help inform efficient identification of undiagnosed HIV infection and high risk for seroconversion among AGYW in similar settings.

Use of Economic Compensation to Increase Demand for Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision in Kenya: Qualitative Interviews With Male Participants in a Randomized Controlled Trial and Their Partners.

BACKGROUND: Interventions to increase demand for medical male circumcision are urgently needed in eastern and southern Africa. Following promising evidence that providing economic compensation can increase male circumcision uptake in Kenya, there is a need to understand the role of this intervention in individuals' decision-making regarding circumcision and explore perceptions of the intervention and concerns such as coercion. METHODS: As part of a randomized controlled trial in Kenya that found compensation in the form of food vouchers worth US $8.75-US $15.00 to be effective in increasing male circumcision uptake, we conducted qualitative in-depth interviews with 45 circumcised and uncircumcised male participants and 19 female partners to explore how compensation provision influenced the decision to get circumcised. Interview transcripts were coded and an inductive thematic analysis was conducted to identify patterns in decision-making. RESULTS: Interviews revealed that compensation promoted circumcision uptake by addressing a major barrier to male circumcision uptake: lost wages during and after the circumcision procedure. Participants who did not get circumcised perceived the compensation amounts to be insufficient for offsetting their costs associated with getting circumcised or reported having nonfinancial barriers that were not addressed by the intervention, such as fear of pain. Participants also reported that they did not feel compelled to get circumcised for financial gain. Female partners of circumcised participants felt that the intervention helped to motivate their partners to get circumcised. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the provision of economic compensation is an acceptable intervention that can address an important barrier to male circumcision uptake. Providing compensation to circumcision clients in the form of food vouchers warrants further consideration in voluntary medical male circumcision demand creation efforts.

The Effects of Providing Fixed Compensation and Lottery-Based Rewards on Uptake of Medical Male Circumcision in Kenya: A Randomized Trial.

BACKGROUND: Effective demand creation strategies are needed to increase uptake of medical male circumcision and reduce new HIV infections in eastern and southern Africa. Building on insights from behavioral economics, we assessed whether providing compensation for opportunity costs of time or lottery-based rewards can increase male circumcision uptake in Kenya. METHODS: Uncircumcised men aged 21-39 years were randomized in 1:1:1 ratio to 2 intervention groups or a control group. One intervention group was offered compensation of US $12.50 conditional on circumcision uptake. Compensation was provided in the form of food vouchers. A second intervention group was offered the opportunity to participate in a lottery with high-value prizes on undergoing circumcision. The primary outcome was circumcision uptake within 3 months. RESULTS: Among 903 participants enrolled, the group that received compensation of US $12.50 had the highest circumcision uptake (8.4%, 26/308), followed by the lottery-based rewards group (3.3%, 10/302), and the control group (1.3%, 4/299). Logistic regression analysis showed that compared with the control group, the fixed compensation group had significantly higher circumcision uptake [adjusted odds ratio 7.1; 95% CI: 2.4 to 20.8]. The lottery-based rewards group did not have significantly higher circumcision uptake than the control group (adjusted odds ratio 2.5; 95% CI: 0.8 to 8.1). CONCLUSIONS: Providing compensation was effective in increasing circumcision uptake among men over a short period. The results are consistent with studies showing that such interventions can modify health behaviors by addressing economic barriers and behavioral biases in decision making. Contrary to findings from studies of other health behaviors, lottery-based rewards did not significantly increase circumcision uptake. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registry for International Development Impact Evaluations: RIDIE-STUDY-ID-530e60df56107.