HIV/STD Risk and PrEP Implementation Messaging Among Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men

Summary

The goal of this observational study is to learn about awareness around PrEP use and adherence, condom use, sexual risk-taking behavior, and substance-using behaviors in men having sex with men. The main objective is to study a prospective cohort of MSM in Atlanta, Chicago, and San Diego to understand men's strategies to prevent HIV/Sexually Transmissible Infections (STIs), including PrEP use and adherence, condom use, sexual risk-taking behavior, and substance-using behaviors

Participants will complete:

* Quantitative surveys quarterly
* HIV/ STI testing every 6 months
* Qualitative assessments: focus group discussions and in-depth interviews

Conditions

• Sexually Transmitted Infections
• Gay
• Pre Exposure Prophylaxis

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Quantitative survey

Quantitative surveys will be conducted through Alchemer, a HIPPA-compliant online survey system previously used by our group in collaborative research with CDC and supported by the Emory University Center for AIDS Research (CFAR). Surveys will be optimized for participants to take them through a personal computer, mobile phone, tablet, or the SMART study app. For participants who do not have any of these devices or prefer not to take the survey from their device, each city will have a research space where participants can schedule a convenient time to take the survey on a computer or tablet that the study will provide for that purpose.

PROCEDURE

HIV and STI testing

The research team has developed and validated procedures for self-collection of specimens for testing for STIs (syphilis, urethral, rectal, and pharyngeal gonorrhea/chlamydia) and HIV self-testing. All participants will be mailed self-collection kits to provide samples for STIs (urine, rectal swab, and pharyngeal swab for gonorrhea/chlamydia; dried blood spot (DBS) for syphilis testing) and HIV (HIV 4th generation testing on DBS specimens in a CLIA-certified laboratory). Participants will be asked to collect specimens for their STI and HIV testing (every 6 months) and return them to Molecular Testing Labs. For participants who prefer in-person procedures, they will meet study staff who will provide them with the STI and HIV self-collection kit and instructions and provide a room for participants to collect their specimens.

BEHAVIORAL

Qualitative Assessment

Focus group discussions (n=up to 48 men for 3 qualitative assessments; total n=up to 144 men) as a part of the study consisting of 9 to 12 focus group discussions (FGD) with an average of 8 (range 3-10) participants in each (3 per city). These focus groups will be conducted once during the first year of the study. FGD will be conducted by a trained moderator using a semi-structured interview guide developed in collaboration with CDC scientists. For the FGD, in each city, there will be one FGD with men who have never used PrEP, one with men who are using PrEP and report no adherence issues, and one with men who are currently using PrEP or used PrEP previously and report sub-optimal adherence. In-Depth Interviews (IDIs) A series of 90 in-depth interviews (same n=up to 45 men for each of 3 qualitative assessments) will be conducted over 18 months: up to 45 IDIs each 6 months apart, with up to 15 IDIs per city each wave.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• San Diego State University

  collaborator OTHER

• University of Chicago

  collaborator OTHER

• CDC Foundation

  collaborator OTHER

• Emory University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Patrick Sullivan, DVM · Rollins School of Public Health

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

MALE

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2024-06-29

Primary Completion

2026-08-31

Completion

2026-08-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations