Perceptions of Long-Acting Injectable Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Among Men Who Have Sex With Men and Transgender Individuals in Europe Using Structural Text Modeling Technique: Cross-Sectional Study.

Abstract

Background: Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) effectively prevents HIV but remains unevenly accessible across Europe. Long-acting PrEP (LA-PrEP), recently approved in Europe, offers new HIV protection options. However, no qualitative evidence is available to inform people's perceptions of this novel modality.

Objective: This study provides the first large-scale, qualitative evidence in English from 20 European countries on how men who have sex with men (MSM) and trans* individuals perceive LA-PrEP.

Methods: We analyzed open-ended responses from 3123 HIV-negative MSM and trans* individuals from 20 European countries who completed the PROTECT survey in English. Participants were asked to describe what LA-PrEP means to them using words or short phrases. We used word clouds for initial insights and structural topic modeling to identify topics and explore their relevance across socioeconomic status, migration background, oral PrEP use, and affordability and the association of these perceptions with LA-PrEP intention.

Results: The responses reflected generally positive associations toward LA-PrEP, with the most frequently mentioned word being "safe," "freedom," and "convenient." However, some ambivalent and negative perceptions, such as "nothing," "unknown," "dunno," and "unnecessary," were also noted. Structural topic modeling identified 5 main response topics: safety, empowerment, convenience/reliability, peace of mind, and concerns/uncertainties. The empowerment offered by LA-PrEP was the most prominent topic, representing one third (28.1%) of the responses, followed by safety (21%), convenience and reliability (16%), and peace of mind (15%), while concerns/uncertainties made up 20%. Variation in the relevance of these topics was found, showing LA-PrEP being seen as more empowering (=.070, 95% CI 0.042-0.097) and convenient (=.057, 95% CI 0.034-0.081) by current oral PrEP users, but less empowering (=-.052, 95% CI -0.087 to 0.017) and convenient (=-.034, 95% CI -0.064 to 0.005) for individuals in countries with limited oral PrEP access and affordability. The topic of safety was more relevant among those with lower levels of education (=.052, 95% CI 0.022-0.083) and those living in a country where PrEP was not reimbursed (=.035, 95% CI 0.002-0.069), but less relevant among current oral PrEP users (=-.094, 95% CI -0.12 to 0.066). We also found that ambivalent and negative perceptions were less relevant among current oral PrEP users (=-.032, 95% CI -0.056 to 0.007) and were negatively associated with a lower intention to use LA-PrEP (=-.075, 95% CI -0.101 to 0.005).

Conclusions: Our research showed that MSM and trans* individuals in Europe generally have a positive outlook on LA-PrEP, suggesting it is likely to be well accepted upon its introduction in Europe. However, a subset of the target population may be hesitant to adopt LA-PrEP, underscoring the need for alternative HIV prevention strategies tailored to these individuals. To support potential future LA-PrEP implementation in Europe and to maximize its impact, appropriate communication strategies are essential for supporting informed decision-making.