International Journal of STD & AIDS最新文献

{"title":"Comparison of topical potassium hydroxide 5% solution with cryotherapy in the treatment of patients with genital warts: A randomized controlled clinical trial.","authors":"Fateme Javame Ghazvini, Mohammad Javad Yazdanpanah, Yalda Nahidi, Shatila Torabi, Raheleh Ganjali, Amir Hoshang Mohammadpour, Seyyedeh Zahra Ghasemi","doi":"10.1177/09564624241300776","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241300776","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Given the therapeutic challenge of wart treatment and the need for an ideal treatment that is effective, noninvasive, cost-effective, and has minimal side effects, this study aims to compare the local impact of a 5% potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution with cryotherapy, the current standard treatment for genital warts.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Two groups, each consisting of 49 patients: the first group was treated with a daily topical application of 5% KOH solution using a swab, while the second group underwent cryotherapy in two 5-20 s freeze-thaw cycles. Before treatment, patient demographic data and number of lesions were recorded. Follow-up visits were conducted at four-week intervals for 12 weeks, during which the number of lesions, time to complete recovery, and skin-related side effects were examined and recorded, ensuring comprehensive data collection.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 98 patients (average age: 28.40 ± 7.34 years), 55 cases (55.1%) being female and 43 cases (43.9%) being male. Importantly, there was no significant difference in terms of gender (<i>p</i> = .684), education (<i>p</i> = .533), and marital status (<i>p</i> = .703) between the two study groups. Further, no significant difference in previous infection history (<i>p</i> = .493) and partner infection (<i>p</i> = .098) was identified. There was no significant difference in terms of treatment response (<i>p</i> = .510) and relapse (<i>p</i> < .999) between the two KOH and cryotherapy study groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The study found no significant differences in treatment response, relapse rates, or side effects between using 5% potassium hydroxide solution and cryotherapy for genital wart treatment. These findings suggest that both modalities offer comparable efficacy and safety profiles, providing clinicians with valuable options in tailoring treatment approaches for patients with genital warts.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"205-211"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142728691","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Corrigendum to \"Effectiveness, safety, and patient-reported outcomes of bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide in routine clinical care in Italy: 12-Month results from the BICSTaR cohort\".","authors":"","doi":"10.1177/09564624251320827","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624251320827","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"341"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143433132","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"\"Let's get PrEP'd\" - A pilot service evaluation of the LVNDR health digital pre-exposure prophylaxis pathway for HIV prevention.","authors":"Joshua S Wells, Jennifer Ching, Araxie Boyadjian, Christopher El Badaoui","doi":"10.1177/09564624241303815","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241303815","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Despite the availability of PrEP, 2023 data have demonstrated an increase in new HIV diagnoses. LGBTQ + individuals are disproportionately affected by HIV. PrEP access is crucial but limited due to high demand on sexual health services. Additional modalities of PrEP access may help to address this unmet need. LVNDR Health, a digital solution for LGBTQ + care, sought to evaluate its PrEP pathway.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional service evaluation of users accessing the LVNDR digital PrEP pathway between December 2022-April 2023. Operational data (e.g., appointment attendance) were derived from the clinical dashboard. Service-user feedback (e.g., service experience) was sought using a bespoke questionnaire. Descriptive statistics are reported for socio-demographic information. Non-parametric between-group analyses are reported.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In total, 90 users completed the end-to-end pathway and received PrEP. Average time for pathway completion was 2.7 weeks. A survey response rate of 71.0% was achieved. Users reported significantly higher service satisfaction, inclusivity, and accessibility, compared to their most recent experience accessing PrEP (<i>p</i> < .01). Up to 89% of users strongly agreed they would switch to a digital PrEP service if made available.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Digital PrEP shows acceptability among LGBTQ + populations. More research is needed to assess scalability, digital equity, and cost-effectiveness.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"223-230"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11863505/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142768788","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mental health service utilization among patients followed up in tertiary HIV/AIDS clinics in Turkey: A need for integrated care.","authors":"Ezgi Ince Guliyev, Dilek Yıldız Sevgi, Alper Gündüz, Bilgül Mete, Deniz Büyükgök, Hayat Kumbasar Karaosmanoğlu, Ozlem Altuntaş Aydın, Fatma Ceyhan, Bilge Nur Bilge, Irmak Polat, Fehmi Tabak","doi":"10.1177/09564624241301491","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241301491","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Mental health (MH) care for people living with HIV (PLWH) emerges as an important unmet need, yet there are no integrated HIV-MH clinics in Turkey. Our aim is to determine MH service use and its associated factors in PLWH followed up in the HIV/AIDS outpatient clinics in Istanbul/Turkey.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional study was conducted at the HIV/AIDS outpatient clinics of the Infectious Diseases (ID) departments in hospitals affiliated with the ACTHIV-IST Study Group. Structured interviews were performed using questionnaires that covered psychiatric state, medical history, and help-seeking behavior.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Out of 172 outpatients, 121 (70.3%) reported MH complaints after infection, and 65.6% felt a need to see MH professionals. Among those, 59% shared their MH distress with the ID team. However, only 20.7% applied to an MH service, and 16.5% received psychiatric treatment. Previous MH diagnoses (AOR = 4.11; 95%CI = 1.26-13.39), sharing the disease with the ID team (AOR = 4.18; 95%CI = 1.24-14.11), and being hospitalized due to HIV (AOR = 6.54; 95%CI = 1.21-35.39) emerged as the predictors of MH service use among those who would like to see an MH professional in logistic regression.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Closer contact with the healthcare system may increase the chances of PLWH receiving MH care. Thus, integrating MH services in HIV/AIDS care would help reach more PLWH who are distressed.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"185-194"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142667944","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Health services delivery factors affecting HIV retesting among pregnant women at 34 weeks gestation in Saboba District, Northern region, Ghana.","authors":"Williams Azumah Abanga, Desmond Klu, Maxwell Dery, Iddrisu Fusheini, Salifu Dwomoh, Chrysantus Kubio, Harry Kwami Tagbor","doi":"10.1177/09564624241303819","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241303819","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Vertical transmission of HIV is a major global public health issue, particularly due to maternal HIV acquisition during pregnancy, challenges in enrolling pregnant women living with HIV into antiretroviral therapy programmes, and loss to follow-up. The factors influencing HIV retesting in pregnant women with an initial HIV-negative results are understudied. The study examined health service delivery factors affecting HIV retesting among pregnant women.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional study was conducted in six health facilities in the Saboba District in 2023. Pregnant women who initially tested HIV-negative and were attending antenatal clinics at 34 weeks gestation or later were randomly selected. Data was analyzed using Stata version 15.0. Logistic regression was used to examined the health service factors affecting HIV retesting at a 0.05 significant level.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Out of 445 pregnant women initially HIV-negative, only 21.1% were retested at 34 weeks gestation. Pregnant women receiving antenatal care at health centers were less likely to be retested [aOR = 0.34; CI: 0.14-0.84], while those who spent less time during ANC were more likely to retest [aOR = 2.58; CI: 1.33-5.01].</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Improvement in HIV retesting requires reproductive health units to develop strategies to enhance coverage and reduce waiting times at health centers could encourage more pregnant women to retest for HIV.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"212-222"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142739355","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Accelerated initiation of antiretroviral therapy by virtual health in service members newly diagnosed with HIV infection.","authors":"Anatole Openshaw, Jason Okulicz, Joseph Yabes","doi":"10.1177/09564624241301467","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241301467","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Delays in HIV antiretroviral therapy (ART) have been associated with HIV disease progression and forward transmission. We evaluated the effectiveness of an accelerated ART virtual protocol (VP) for active duty (AD) members with incident HIV diagnosis.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Under the traditional protocol (TP), service members stationed worldwide were evaluated in-person at Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) and received comprehensive HIV care. In February 2020, a VP was adopted to initiate HIV care at the local base. Chart reviews were conducted to obtain patient demographics and clinical data. Continuous variables were compared using 2-tailed t tests, categorical variables were evaluated with Fisher's exact or Chi squared tests.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Time from HIV notification to ART initiation was significantly shorter with the VP compared to the TP (15 days vs 25 days; <i>p</i> = <0.05). The VP had a shorter time to viral suppression compared to the TP (96 days [SD ± 86] compared to 269 days [SD ± 300], <i>p</i> = <0.05).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The VP was associated with a shorter time to HIV specialty evaluation, ART initiation, and viral suppression. The use of virtual health protocols for other time sensitive medical interventions and/or for access to limited specialties should be considered as these may improve quality of care.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"241-245"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142768853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Correlates of HIV testing among men in Ghana: Cross-sectional analysis of the 2022 demographic and health survey.","authors":"Sulemana Ansumah Saaka, Roger Antabe, Isaac Luginaah","doi":"10.1177/09564624251324976","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/09564624251324976","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>New HIV infections are on the rise in Ghana, with approximately 16,574 new cases reported in 2022 alone. Although HIV prevalence rate is higher among women aged 15-49 years (2.0 [1.7-2.3]) than men aged 15-49 (1.0 [0.8-1.2]) in Ghana, evidence form the country's 2022 Demographic and health Survey suggest that only 12% of men had ever been tested for HIV once in their lifetime relative to 17% of women, and yet more men (35%) than women (23%) reported having sexual intercourse with persons who were neither their wife nor live-in partners. More so, the Ghana National HIV and AIDS Policy has over the years positively influenced the utilization of HIV testing (HIVT) services among women in Ghana through antenatal care visits. While this policy encourages women to undertake testing with their husbands, most men in the Ghanaian Context rarely accompany their spouse to antenatal care due to several reasons including conflicting work schedules, thus limiting their chances of getting tested. Using a nationally representative dataset, this study adds to the broader literature by exploring the factors associated with HIVT among men.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Using the 2022 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (<i>N</i> = 7044 males), and employing multiple logistic regression models, this study explored the factors associated with HIVT among men.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Married men (OR = 1.723; <i>p</i> < .001), the employed, particularly, those paid in cash only (OR = 2.021; <i>p</i> < .001) and those paid both in cash and kind (OR = 1.823; <i>p</i> < .001), those who had knowledge of HIV test kits (OR = 1.708; <i>p</i> < .001), aware and approve to use Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) (OR = 1.1280; <i>p</i> < .001), as well as those who visited a health facility in the past 6 months (OR = 1.615; <i>p</i> < .001), all significantly reported higher odds of testing. Moreover, Educational attainment, age, household wealth, religion, ethnicity, and the region of residence significantly predicted HIVT in the study context.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Socio-demographic, economic, geographic and health-related factors have significant influence on the uptake of HIVT among men in Ghana, thus underscoring the need for tailored interventions that consider diverse contextual factors in HIV prevention and healthcare delivery.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"9564624251324976"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143531111","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"DOXY do, or DOXY Don't? Syphilis and doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis: A case report.","authors":"Omar Chircop, Courtney Jaggers, Martha Spiteri, Aaron Schembri, Valeska Padovese","doi":"10.1177/09564624241308026","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241308026","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The resurgence of syphilis across Europe has led to a growing number of atypical cases, often characterised by varied symptoms that can delay diagnosis. We report the case of a young man who has sex with men (MSM), presenting with persistent headaches and swelling of the forehead suggestive of giant cell arteritis (GCA). Despite a recent negative syphilis test, further investigations confirmed the diagnosis of neurosyphilis. The patient had been using doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (DoxyPEP), which is suspected to have delayed the diagnosis by masking the typical antibody response. This case highlights concerns about DoxyPEP's impact on syphilis detection and disease progression. Further research is warranted to explore its effects on antimicrobial resistance, the human microbiome, and clinical outcomes.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"324-326"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142846252","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Retention in care among people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in a low-resource setting.","authors":"Ahmed Cordie, Rahma Mohamed, Ammar Hatem, Mahmoud Essam, Shaker Wagih Shaltout, Naeema El Garhy, Lamiaa Al Sehemy, Mirella Sherif, Reham Awad Awad, Mariam Ismail Abdelraouf, Aya M Al-Sharif, Ahmed Ramadan, Sahar Hassany, Engy El Khateeb, Amal M Sayed, Zainab Wafik Zakaria Masoud, Rania Soliman Hamza, Hend Hamed Tamim, Mona Salah Eldin Hamdy, Gamal Esmat, Haidi Karam-Allah Ramadan","doi":"10.1177/09564624241306152","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241306152","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>This study aimed to evaluate the retention in care among a cohort of Egyptian people living with HIV (PLWHIV).</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>The study was conducted on PLWHIV attending Kasr Alainy HIV and Viral Hepatitis Centre, Cairo, Egypt, from January 1, 2019, to March 31, 2023. PLWHIV were considered not retained in care if there was no documented clinical visit or HIV viral load (VL) or CD4 count test for more than 6 months from their last recorded visit or test. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to test factors associated with retention in care.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>After excluding those who died and were referred, 369 PLWHIV were included in the analysis, and retention in care was observed in 325 (88%). The majority were males (81.8%) with a median age of 34 [29-41] years. Undetectable VL (OR: 3.555; 95% CI: 1.49-8.47), hepatitis B vaccination (OR: 2.835; 95% CI: 1.07-7.48), CD4 test availability (OR: 2.604; 95% CI: 1.02-6.64), receiving dolutegravir based antiretroviral therapy (OR: 2.429; 95% CI: 1.06-5.537), and longer duration of know HIV infection (OR: 1.025; 95% CI: 1.01- 1.04) were correlated with retention in care. Surprisingly, higher education levels were negatively correlated with retention in care (OR: 0.195, 95%: CI: 0.071-0.533), suggesting the need for further research to explore this relationship.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>These results are invaluable for developing targeted interventions and informing health policies to improve retention in HIV care in Egypt. Enhancing access to VL and CD4 testing, promoting VL suppression, and focusing on specific groups at risk of dropping out of care are essential strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"275-282"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142800360","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Stop classifying <i>Neisseria gonorrhoeae</i> as an obligate pathogen in men who have sex with men: A viewpoint.","authors":"Thibaut Vanbaelen, Sheeba Santhini Manoharan-Basil, Chris Kenyon","doi":"10.1177/09564624241306600","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09564624241306600","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":14408,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of STD & AIDS","volume":" ","pages":"337-340"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142806963","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}