METHOD: A mixed methods approach will be used. Qualitative part: Design: focus group discussions (FGDs) will be conducted.
SETTING: Hospital/NGOs in Terengganu, Malaysia.
PARTICIPANTS: Three FGDs will be conducted with male and female HIV/AIDS patients, and one group of local community leaders. One FGD will be conducted for each group. Three in-depth interviews (IDIs) will be conducted with patients who had HIV/AIDS, of which one will be female. Quantitative part: Design: a cluster randomized clinical trial with 384 HIV/AIDS patients in Terengganu, Malaysia.
INTERVENTION: Mobile SMS counselling intervention for patients concerning the prevention of HIV/AIDS.
RESULTS: The main outcomes of this study will be the differences in knowledge, attitude, and practices of patients concerning the prevention of HIV/AIDS between the baseline and immediate follow-up after the intervention, and after 3 months.
CONCLUSIONS: The mobile based SMS counselling intervention developed will be effective in improving the knowledge, attitude, and practices of patients concerning HIV/AIDS prevention in Terengganu, Malaysia.
TRIAL REGISTRATION: Thai Clinical Trials Registry, TCTR20200212001; 7/02/2020.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among HIV-infected individuals attending the main referral hospital in Jazan Region during the period 2017-2019. The participants' TB status, CD4+ lymphocyte count, and viral load were assessed. In addition, their demographic and clinical information was collected using a structured questionnaire.
RESULTS: A total of 316 HIV-positive individuals aged between 13 and 81 years (75% male and 25% female) were enrolled in this study. Of them, 30 (9.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.2, 10.6%) were diagnosed with TB: 46.7% (14/30) had pulmonary TB and 53.3% (16/30) had extrapulmonary TB. The highest proportion of TB-positive PLWHA was found among participants aged 18-30 years (11.6%) and among non-Saudis (14.0%) when compared to other age groups and Saudi participants (7.4%). Multivariate analysis showed that male gender (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 4.79; 95% CI = 1.22, 18.74), past medical history (PMH) of TB (AOR = 29.67; 95% CI = 5.31, 164.32), PMH of other RTIs (AOR = 5.86; 95 % CI = 2.14, 16.06), CD4+ lymphocyte count of <200 cells/mm³ (AOR = 4.33; 95% CI = 1.65, 11.36), and viral load of ≥1 × 103 copies/mL (AOR = 5.46; 95% CI = 2.02, 14.77) were the significant risk factors of TB among the studied PLWHA.
CONCLUSION: The prevalence of TB/HIV co-infection among the studied population was 9.5%. Therefore, all PLWHA should be screened for TB at every visit to a health facility. The findings highlight that integration of health services for both TB and HIV/AIDS in Saudi Arabia is recommended.
OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to gain insight into (1) access and utilization of communication technology (eg, landline phone, internet, mobile phone), (2) acceptability of mHealth-based interventions for HIV prevention services, and (3) preferences regarding the format and frequency of mHealth interventions among Malaysian men who have sex with men.
METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey with Malaysian men who have sex with men between July 2018 and March 2020. Participants were recruited using respondent-driven sampling in the Greater Kuala Lumpur region of Malaysia. We collected information on demographic characteristics, HIV risk-related behaviors, access to and the frequency of use of communication technology, and acceptability of using mHealth for HIV prevention using a self-administered questionnaire with a 5-point scale (1, never; 2, rarely; 3, sometimes; 4, often; 5, all the time).
RESULTS: A total of 376 men participated in the survey. Almost all respondents owned or had access to a smartphone with internet access (368/376, 97.9%) and accessed the internet daily (373/376, 99.2%), mainly on a smartphone (334/376, 88.8%). Participants on average used smartphones primarily for social networking (mean 4.5, SD 0.8), followed by sending or receiving emails (mean 4.0, SD 1.0), and searching for health-related information (mean 3.5, SD 0.9). There was high acceptance of the use of mHealth for HIV prevention (mean 4.1, SD 1.5), including for receiving HIV prevention information (345/376, 91.8%), receiving medication reminders (336/376, 89.4%), screening and monitoring sexual activity (306/376, 81.4%) or illicit drug use (281/376, 74.7%), and monitoring drug cravings (280/376, 74.5%). Participants overwhelmingly preferred a smartphone app over other modalities (eg, text, phone call, email) for engaging in mHealth HIV prevention tools. Preference for app notifications ranged from 186/336 (53.9%), for receiving HIV prevention information, to 212/336 (69.3%), for screening and monitoring sexual activity. Acceptance of mHealth was higher for those who were university graduates (P=.003), living in a relationship with a partner (P=.04), engaged in sexualized drug use (P=.01), and engaged in receptive anal sex (P=.006).
CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study provide support for developing and deploying mHealth strategies for HIV prevention using a smartphone app in men who have sex with men-a key population with suboptimal engagement in HIV prevention and treatment.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims to test the feasibility and acceptability of an AI chatbot in promoting the uptake of HIV testing and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in MSM.
METHODS: We conducted beta testing with 14 MSM from February to April 2022 using Zoom (Zoom Video Communications, Inc). Beta testing involved 3 steps: a 45-minute human-chatbot interaction using the think-aloud method, a 35-minute semistructured interview, and a 10-minute web-based survey. The first 2 steps were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology. Emerging themes from the qualitative data were mapped on the 4 domains of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology: performance expectancy, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, and social influence.
RESULTS: Most participants (13/14, 93%) perceived the chatbot to be useful because it provided comprehensive information on HIV testing and PrEP (performance expectancy). All participants indicated that the chatbot was easy to use because of its simple, straightforward design and quick, friendly responses (effort expectancy). Moreover, 93% (13/14) of the participants rated the overall chatbot quality as high, and all participants perceived the chatbot as a helpful tool and would refer it to others. Approximately 79% (11/14) of the participants agreed they would continue using the chatbot. They suggested adding a local language (ie, Bahasa Malaysia) to customize the chatbot to the Malaysian context (facilitating condition) and suggested that the chatbot should also incorporate more information on mental health, HIV risk assessment, and consequences of HIV. In terms of social influence, all participants perceived the chatbot as helpful in avoiding stigma-inducing interactions and thus could increase the frequency of HIV testing and PrEP uptake among MSM.
CONCLUSIONS: The current AI chatbot is feasible and acceptable to promote the uptake of HIV testing and PrEP. To ensure the successful implementation and dissemination of AI chatbots in Malaysia, they should be customized to communicate in Bahasa Malaysia and upgraded to provide other HIV-related information to improve usability, such as mental health support, risk assessment for sexually transmitted infections, AIDS treatment, and the consequences of contracting HIV.
METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among PLWHA attending an ART centre of a tertiary care hospital in Islamabad, Pakistan. HRQoL was assessed using a validated Urdu version of EuroQol 5 dimensions 3 level (EQ-5D-3L) and its Visual Analogue Scale (EQ-VAS).
RESULTS: Of the 602 patients included in the analyses, 59.5% (n = 358) reported no impairment in self-care, while 63.1% (n = 380) were extremely anxious/depressed. The overall mean EQ-5D utility score and visual analogue scale (EQ-VAS) score were 0.388 (SD: 0.41) and 66.20 (SD: 17.22), respectively. Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that the factors significantly associated with HRQoL were: female gender; age > 50 years; having primary and secondary education; > 1 year since HIV diagnosis; HIV serostatus AIDS-converted; higher CD 4 T lymphocytes count; detectable viral load; and increased time to ART.
CONCLUSIONS: The current findings have shown that PLWHA in Pakistan adherent to ART had a good overall HRQoL, though with significantly higher depression. Some of the factors identified are amenable to institution-based interventions while mitigating depression to enhance the HRQoL of PLWHA in Pakistan. The HRQoL determined in this study could be useful for future economic evaluation studies for ART and in designing future interventions.
AIM: This study aims to present the status and use of TM and determine the factors associated with its use among patients with HIV/AIDS on highly active ART in a tertiary health institution in Sokoto, Northwest Nigeria.
METHODOLOGY: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study involving HIV/AIDS patients attending antiretroviral treatment center of the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto, Nigeria. The study population comprised PLWHAs attending the ART clinic of the hospital (UDUTH). A total of 271 respondents were recruited into the study and administered a set of pretested structured questionnaire. Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the ethical committee of the teaching hospital.
RESULTS: Only 11 (4.2%) of the respondents had used TM before, of whom 9 (5%) were females and 2 (2.7%) were males with P = 0.399. Only one of the respondents had side effects following the use of TM, and the most common reason for the use of TM was as a result of too much weight loss.
CONCLUSION: Although the use of TM among the study participants in Sokoto was low, there is need to educate PLWHAs about the possible risks of interactions following the concurrent use of TM and ART.