Preference for Long-Acting HIV Prevention Methods Among Transgender Women Vulnerable to HIV in Eastern and Southern United States: Findings from the LITE Study.

HIV incidence among transgender women remains high and disproportionately impacts young, Black, and Latina transgender women. Data on preferred PrEP modalities among this population are limited. Participants in The LITE Cohort completed a survey module on PrEP modality preferences during 24-month study visits.

Enhanced Cohort Methods for HIV Research and Epidemiology (ENCORE): Protocol for a Nationwide Hybrid Cohort for Transgender Women in the United States.

Background: In the United States, transgender women are disproportionately impacted by HIV and prioritized in the national strategy to end the epidemic. Individual, interpersonal, and structural vulnerabilities underlie HIV acquisition among transgender women and fuel syndemic conditions, yet no nationwide cohort monitors their HIV and other health outcomes.

Objective: Our objective is to develop a nationwide cohort to estimate HIV incidence, identify risk factors, and investigate syndemic conditions co-occurring with HIV vulnerability or acquisition among US transgender women.

Food Insecurity Is High in a Multi-Site Cohort of Transgender Women Vulnerable to or Living with HIV in the Eastern and Southern United States: Baseline Findings from the LITE Cohort.

The prevalence and correlates of food insecurity-the unavailability of food and limited access to it-have not been adequately considered among transgender women (TW), particularly alongside other health-related conditions burdening this population, such as HIV infection. This study examined the prevalence and correlates of food insecurity among TW. Between 2018 and 2020, 1590 TW in the Eastern and Southern U.

Access to healthcare among transgender women living with and without HIV in the United States: associations with gender minority stress and resilience factors.

Background: Transgender women (TW) experience significant inequities in healthcare access and health disparities compared to cisgender populations. Access to non-transition related healthcare is understudied among TW. We aimed to assess the association between access to care and gender minority stress and resilience factors among TW living with and without HIV in eastern and southern United States.

Prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Infections Among Transgender Women With and Without HIV in the Eastern and Southern United States.

Background: Data on the epidemiology of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among transgender women (TGW) with and without human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) are limited.

Methods: We analyzed baseline data collected from a cohort of adult TGW across 6 eastern and southern US cities between March 2018 and August 2020 (n = 1018). Participants completed oral HIV screening, provided self-collected rectal and urogenital specimens for chlamydia and gonorrhea testing, and provided sera specimens for syphilis testing.

PrEP initiation and discontinuation among transgender women in the United States: a longitudinal, mixed methods cohort study.

Introduction: Transgender women in the United States experience high HIV incidence and suboptimal Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) engagement. We sought to estimate PrEP initiation and discontinuation rates and characterize PrEP discontinuation experiences among a prospective cohort of transgender women.

Methods: Using a sequential, explanatory, mixed-methods design, 1312 transgender women at risk for HIV acquisition were enrolled from March 2018 to August 2020 and followed through July 2022 (median follow-up 24 months; interquartile range 15-36).

HIV incidence and mortality in transgender women in the eastern and southern USA: a multisite cohort study.

Background: Epidemiological monitoring of HIV among transgender women is minimal despite prioritisation of this group in the US National HIV/AIDS Strategy (2022-2025). We aimed to estimate HIV incidence in a multisite cohort of transgender women in the eastern and southern USA. Participant deaths were identified during follow-up; thus, we felt it was an ethical imperative to report mortality alongside HIV incidence.

Characterizing Arrest and Incarceration in a Prospective Cohort of Transgender Women.

This study characterized arrest, incarceration, and risk factors for incident incarceration among transgender women (TW) in the northeastern and southern United States. During semiannual study visits over 24 months in a multicenter cohort study, TW completed HIV testing and self-administered surveys. In total, 1571 TW completed baseline survey; 1,312 HIV-negative TW enrolled in the cohort and contributed 2134.

Multilevel Determinants of Rapid Antiretroviral Treatment Implementation and Demand in Miami-Dade County.

Background: Rapidly linking newly diagnosed HIV patients to antiretroviral treatment (ART) is the best practice for achieving optimal treatment outcomes, including viral suppression. However, rapid ART implementation varies throughout the United States, highlighting the importance of identifying rapid ART implementation determinants in US HIV epicenters, such as Miami-Dade County (MDC).

Methods: Clinic focus groups (N = 4 clinics) and patient interviews (N = 31 recently diagnosed patients) systematically and qualitatively assessed rapid ART implementation determinants in MDC.

Prevention-effective adherence trajectories among transgender women indicated for PrEP in the United States: a prospective cohort study.

Purpose: Adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) during periods of PrEP-indication (i.e., prevention-effective adherence) is critical for preventing HIV.

Perceived HIV Acquisition Risk and Low Uptake of PrEP Among a Cohort of Transgender Women With PrEP Indication in the Eastern and Southern United States.

Introduction: Preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is effective in preventing HIV among adherent users. However, PrEP uptake among transgender women is low, and current prescribing guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are not specific to transgender women. Self-perceived risk of HIV among those who are PrEP-indicated is not well understood.

Digital Epidemiologic Research on Multilevel Risks for HIV Acquisition and Other Health Outcomes Among Transgender Women in Eastern and Southern United States: Protocol for an Online Cohort.

Background: The HIV epidemic disproportionately impacts transgender women in the United States. Cohort studies identify unique risks for affected populations, but use of facility-based methods may bias findings towards individuals living in research catchment areas, more engaged in health services, or, in the case of transgender populations, those who are open about their transgender identity. Digital clinical trials and other online research methods are increasingly common, providing opportunity to reach those not commonly engaged in research.

American Cohort to Study HIV Acquisition Among Transgender Women in High-Risk Areas (The LITE Study): Protocol for a Multisite Prospective Cohort Study in the Eastern and Southern United States.

Background: In the United States, transgender women (TW) are disproportionately burdened by HIV infection. Cohort studies are needed to evaluate factors driving HIV acquisition among TW over time. These will require implementation strategies that are acceptable to the TW community and feasible to implement.

Implementation of an Immediate HIV Treatment Initiation Program in a Public/Academic Medical Center in the U.S. South: The Miami Test and Treat Rapid Response Program.

Test and Rapid Response Treatment (TRRT) linkage programs have demonstrated improved HIV suppression rates. This paper describes the design and implementation of the Miami TRRT initiative and its clinical impact. Assisted by a dedicated care navigator, patients receiving a reactive HIV rapid test at the Florida Department of Health STD Clinic were offered same-day HIV care at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center Adult HIV Outpatient Clinic.

Psychological stress and short-term hospitalisations or death in patients with heart failure.

Objective: Standard predictors do not fully explain variations in the frequency and timing of heart failure (HF) adverse events (AEs). Psychological stress can trigger acute cardiovascular (CV) events, but it is not known whether stress can precipitate AEs in patients with HF. We investigated prospective associations of psychological stress with AEs in patients with HF.

Single Viral Load Measurements Overestimate Stable Viral Suppression Among HIV Patients in Care: Clinical and Public Health Implications.

Background: The HIV continuum of care paradigm uses a single viral load test per patient to estimate the prevalence of viral suppression. We compared this single-value approach with approaches that used multiple viral load tests to examine the stability of suppression.

Methods: The retrospective analysis included HIV patients who had at least 2 viral load tests during a 12-month observation period.

Decreased reaction time variability is associated with greater cardiovascular responses to acute stress.

Cardiovascular (CV) responses to mental stress are prospectively associated with poor CV outcomes. The association between CV responses to mental stress and reaction times (RTs) in aging individuals may be important but warrants further investigation. The present study assessed RTs to examine associations with CV responses to mental stress in healthy, older individuals using robust regression techniques.

High Concordance Between Mental Stress-Induced and Adenosine-Induced Myocardial Ischemia Assessed Using SPECT in Heart Failure Patients: Hemodynamic and Biomarker Correlates.

Unlabelled: Mental stress can trigger myocardial ischemia, but the prevalence of mental stress-induced ischemia in congestive heart failure (CHF) patients is unknown. We characterized mental stress-induced and adenosine-induced changes in myocardial perfusion and neurohormonal activation in CHF patients with reduced left-ventricular function using SPECT to precisely quantify segment-level myocardial perfusion.

Methods: Thirty-four coronary artery disease patients (mean age±SD, 62±10 y) with CHF longer than 3 mo and ejection fraction less than 40% underwent both adenosine and mental stress myocardial perfusion SPECT on consecutive days.

A Comparison of Methods for Analyzing Viral Load Data in Studies of HIV Patients.

HIV RNA viral load (VL) is a pivotal outcome variable in studies of HIV infected persons. We propose and investigate two frameworks for analyzing VL: (1) a single-measure VL (SMVL) per participant and (2) repeated measures of VL (RMVL) per participant. We compared these frameworks using a cohort of 720 HIV patients in care (4,679 post-enrollment VL measurements).

Association of individual and systemic barriers to optimal medical care in people living with HIV/AIDS in Miami-Dade County.

Barriers to retention in HIV care are detrimental to patients' progress along the HIV continuum of care. Previous literature has focused on individual, client-level barriers, and interventions to address them. In contrast, less work has examined the role of system-level barriers on HIV care outcomes.

Health literacy: impact on the health of HIV-infected individuals.

Health literacy is known to affect vulnerable communities such as persons living with HIV/AIDS. The purpose of this review was to provide a current summary of research on the impact of health literacy on the health of persons living with HIV/AIDS and to address future areas of need. Contemporary studies focused on expanding the reach of health literacy in HIV/AIDS to retention in HIV care, use of technology for assessing and intervening to improve health literacy, and health literacy across the globe, for example.

Psychological and physiological predictors of angina during exercise-induced ischemia in patients with coronary artery disease.

Objective: This study compares sensory-biological, cognitive-emotional, and cognitive-interpretational factors in predicting angina on an exercise treadmill test (ETT).

Methods: A total of 163 patients with ETT-induced ischemia and coronary artery disease in the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Psychophysiological Investigations of Myocardial Ischemia study were given an ETT, during which 79 patients reported angina. We assessed the following as potential predictors of self-reported anginal pain: sensory-biological factors (β-endorphin reactivity, hot pain threshold, and maximal ST-segment depression), cognitive-emotional factors (negative affect and symptom perception), and cognitive-interpretational factors (self-reported history of exercise-induced angina).

Combining psychosocial data to improve prediction of cardiovascular disease risk factors and events: The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute--sponsored Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation study.

Background: There is overlap among psychosocial predictors of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The usefulness of combining psychosocial variables as risk markers for CVD needs investigation.

Methods: Participants were 493 women in the NHLBI WISE study.

The effects of exercise withdrawal on mood and inflammatory cytokine responses in humans.

Mechanisms underlying the relationship between exercise and mood are not well understood. This study sought to investigate the role of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines and autonomic balance in determining the impact of exercise withdrawal on negative mood. Healthy men and women who regularly exercised (N = 26, mean age = 25.

Positive emotional style and subjective, cardiovascular and cortisol responses to acute laboratory stress.

The relationships between positive emotional style and acute salivary cortisol and cardiovascular responses to laboratory stress tasks were examined in 40 young women (mean age=28.8 years). Positive emotional style (PES) was measured by aggregating daily positive mood rating scales over one week.