The ARMADILLO text message intervention to improve the sexual and reproductive health knowledge of adolescents in Peru: Results of a randomized controlled trial.

Background: The ARMADILLO Study determined whether adolescents able to access SRH information on-demand via SMS were better able to reject contraception-related myths and misconceptions as compared with adolescents receiving pushed SMS or no intervention.

Trial Design: This trial was an unblinded, three-arm, parallel-group, individual RCT with a 1:1:1 allocation. Trial registration: ISRCTN85156148.

Adolescents' perceived barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health services in California: a cross-sectional survey.

Background: Adolescents may forego needed sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services due to a variety of concerns and barriers. The purpose of this study is to compare adolescents' perceptions of these barriers by participant characteristics including race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, housing situation, and sexual experience.

Methods: Adolescents in a California-wide sexual health education program completed an anonymous survey at baseline (N = 10,015) about perceived barriers to using SRH services.

"The flu… is a little more complicated than a cold": Knowledge, beliefs, and practices related to influenza and influenza vaccination among at-risk populations and health professionals in Peru.

Background: Influenza is a major source of morbidity and mortality with an annual global attack rate estimated at 5-10% in adults and 20-30% in children. Influenza vaccination is the main strategy for reducing influenza-related morbidity and mortality. Like several other countries, Peru has low vaccination coverage, estimated at 25-50% among young children and older adults.

Developing an SMS text message intervention on sexual and reproductive health with adolescents and youth in Peru.

Background: Improved access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and information is essential for supporting adolescents and youth in making informed decisions and optimizing each young person's outcomes related to their SRH, health and well-being and countries' current and future social and economic development. Mobile phones offer opportunities for young people to privately access SRH content and to be linked to SRH services. The objective of this study was to develop the content for an SMS (short message service or "text message") platform jointly with adolescents and youth in three regions in Peru (Lima, Ayacucho and Loreto) as part of the ARMADILLO (Adolescent/Youth Reproductive Mobile Access and Delivery Initiative for Love and Life Outcomes) Study.

Filling the gaps in the Peruvian care continuum for HIV-infected pregnant mothers: a case-control study in metropolitan Lima-Callao, Peru.

Mother-to-child transmission of HIV (MTCT) accounts for a significant proportion of new HIV infections in Peru. The purpose of this case-control study was to examine maternal and infant factors associated with MTCT in Peru from 2015 to 2016. For each biologically confirmed case infant, we randomly selected four birth year- and birth hospital-matched controls from five hospitals in Lima-Callao.

¿? Mapping, Enumerating, and Describing Male and Transwomen Sex Workers in Venue-Based and Virtual Spaces in Lima, Peru.

HIV disproportionately affects men who have sex with men and transwomen in Latin America. Globally, efforts to map, enumerate, and describe male and transwomen sex workers (MTSWs) are limited. We mapped and described venue- and non-venue-based MTSWs and enumerated venuebased MTSWs in Lima, Peru's capital.

Exploring the Literacy Habits of Caregivers with Young Children Ages 11-25 Months Old in Lima, Peru: A Pilot Study for the LIBRE Project.

Peruvian children's sub-optimal results on international and national assessments underscore the need for enhanced investments in early childhood development (ECD) such as shared reading between caregivers and young children. We conducted a qualitative study with 13 mothers of young children ages 11-25 months old that: used focus groups to explore caregivers' perspectives and experiences related to their daily activities, including reading and other ECD activities, with their young children; and used focus groups and video recordings to describe caregivers' experiences reading with these children during an at-home opportunity for shared reading. The mothers described daily schedules that focused on taking care of their daily chores and making sure that their young children were busy as they carried out those tasks.

Kuskaya: a training program for collaboration and innovation in global health.

To solve increasingly complex global health problems, health professionals must collaborate with professionals in non-health-related fields. The Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia and University of Washington created the NIH-funded Kuskaya training program in response to the need for transformative global health training for talented graduates from all disciplines. Kuskaya is a 1-year, interdisciplinary training program that teaches Peruvian and US graduates critical skills related to public health research through the design and implementation of a collaborative research project in Peru.

Information = equity? How increased access to information can enhance equity and improve health outcomes for pregnant women in Peru.

Background: The Peruvian health system provides care through numerous, disconnected health establishments and information systems. Our objective was to explore information use and needs of pregnant women to improve quality of care.

Methods: We carried out a mixed methods study in the Lima capital metropolitan area in 15 health centers.

Sexual Risk, Behavior, and HIV Testing and Status among Male and Transgender Women Sex Workers and their Clients in Lima, Peru.

Objectives –: To determine the socio-demographics, sexual practices, and HIV prevalence of male sex workers (MSWs), transwomen sex workers (TSWs), and their male clients in Lima, Peru.

Methods –: Following ethnographic mapping of sex work venues, we revisited randomly selected venues to survey MSWs, TSWs and their clients.

Results –: MSWs and TSW clients are more educated than MSW clients and TSWs.

The Earning and Spending Habits of Male Sex Workers in Lima, Peru.

Over the past decade, data have identified male sex work as a potentially viable economic decision; despite this, male sex workers (MSWs) continue to be perceived as group with access to few assets and resources. Using data from a pilot skills- building intervention for MSWs in Lima, Peru, an analysis of the economic characteristics of 209 MSWs is presented. The majority reported livable incomes with median earnings of US$250 per month, 83% earning above the urban poverty line.

Knowledge, attitudes and practices related to tuberculosis in pharmacy workers in a cross-sectional survey in El Agustino, Peru.

Introduction: Although the worldwide incidence of tuberculosis (TB) is slowly decreasing, annual infection rates in Peru remain among the highest in the Americas. Pharmacies could play an important role in facilitating early detection of TB. However, the awareness, expertise and cooperation of pharmacy workers is fundamental.

Child, Caregiver, and Health Care Provider Perspectives and Experiences Regarding Disclosure of HIV Status to Perinatally Infected Children in Lima, Peru.

Background: Despite recommendations for disclosure of HIV status to children living with HIV (CLHIV), fewer than half of CLHIV at the Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño (INSN) in Lima, Peru, have had disclosure. How and when the disclosure process for CLHIV should take place in Peru has not been studied.

Methods: We conducted a qualitative study at INSN to explore perceptions and experiences of 6 health care providers (HCPs), 14 disclosed and nondisclosed CLHIV (8-17 years), and their 14 caregivers regarding knowledge of illness, disclosure of HIV status, and appropriate disclosure approaches.

Sexual health knowledge and practices and STI/HIV prevalence among long-distance truck drivers in Peru.

Objectives: HIV and other sexually transmitted infections remain a challenge globally and many key groups have yet to be studied. Evidence shows that truck drivers may have high-risk behaviors and higher sexually transmitted infection/HIV prevalence because they are a highly mobile population. However, there is little to no information on this group in Peru.

Mental health impact of social capital interventions: a systematic review.

Purpose: Mental disorders are a major contributor to the global burden of disease and disability, and can be extremely costly at both individual and community level. Social capital, (SC) defined as an individual's social relationships and participation in community networks, may lower the risk of mental disorders while increasing resilience capacity, adaptation and recovery. SC interventions may be a cost-effective way of preventing and ameliorating these conditions.

Morbidity and Mortality of a Cohort of Peruvian HIV-infected Children 2003-2012.

Background: Data on pediatric HIV in Peru are limited. The National Institute of Child Health (Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño: INSN) cares for the most HIV-infected children under the age of 18 years in the country. We describe the outcomes of children seen at INSN's HIV clinic over the 10 years when antiretroviral therapy and prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) interventions became available in 2004.

The odyssey of linking to and staying in HIV care among male sex workers in Peru.

Background: In Peru, there is little information about the HIV care continuum. Therefore, we conducted a study to describe the HIV care continuum among male sex workers (MSWs) in Lima.

Methods: We applied close-ended surveys with 209 MSWs about their engagement in the HIV care continuum and open-ended surveys with 34 MSWs who are people living with HIV (PLHIV) to explore their linkage to and retention in HIV care.

Perspectives, Decision Making, and Final Mode of Delivery in Pregnant Women With a Previous C-Section in a General Hospital in Peru: Prospective Analysis.

Unlabelled: Explore the perspectives, decision-making process, and final mode of delivery among pregnant women with a previous C-section (Cesarean section) in a general public sector hospital in Lima, Peru. A qualitative prospective study using semistructured interviews at two time points in the outpatient obstetrics and gynecology clinic of a public sector, university-affiliated reference hospital in Lima, Peru. Seventeen adult pregnant women with a prior C-section who were deemed by their attending obstetrician to be candidates for a trial of labor were interviewed.

Knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding cystic echinococcosis and sheep herding in Peru: a mixed-methods approach.

Background: The parasitic disease, cystic echinococcosis (CE), is prevalent in low-income, livestock-raising communities and 2000 new people will be diagnosed this year in South America alone. The disease usually passes from livestock to dogs to humans, making it a zoonotic disease and part of the One Health Initiative. Control of CE has been infamously difficult; no endemic areas of South America have succeeded in maintaining sustainable eradication of the parasite.

Plagiarism, Cheating and Research Integrity: Case Studies from a Masters Program in Peru.

Plagiarism is a serious, yet widespread type of research misconduct, and is often neglected in developing countries. Despite its far-reaching implications, plagiarism is poorly acknowledged and discussed in the academic setting, and insufficient evidence exists in Latin America and developing countries to inform the development of preventive strategies. In this context, we present a longitudinal case study of seven instances of plagiarism and cheating arising in four consecutive classes (2011-2014) of an Epidemiology Masters program in Lima, Peru, and describes the implementation and outcomes of a multifaceted, "zero-tolerance" policy aimed at introducing research integrity.

Interventions to Prevent Sexually Transmitted Infections, Including HIV, Among Young People in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review of the Published and Gray Literature.

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV, are prevalent among adolescents and can have lasting adverse health consequences. The objective of this review is to identify high-quality interventions and evaluations to decrease STI transmission and related risky behaviors among young people in low- and middle-income countries. PubMed, Embase, PsycInfo, Cinahl Plus, Popline, and the Cochrane Databases were searched without language limitations for articles published through November 2015.

[Wawared Peru: reducing health inequities and improving maternal health by improving information systems in health].

In developing countries, there are no high quality data to support decision-making and governance due to inadequate information collection and transmission processes. Our project WawaRed-Peru: "Reducing health inequities and improving maternal health by improving health information systems" aims to improve maternal health processes and indicators through the implementation of interoperability standards for maternal health information systems in order for decision makers to have timely, high quality information. Through this project, we hope to support the development of better health policies and to also contribute to reducing problems of health equity among Peruvian women and potentially women in other developing countries.

Needs, acceptability, and value of humanitarian medical assistance in remote Peruvian Amazon riverine communities.

Much debate exists regarding the need, acceptability, and value of humanitarian medical assistance. We conducted a cross-sectional study on 457 children under 5 years from four remote riverine communities in the Peruvian Amazon and collected anthropometric measures, blood samples (1-4 years), and stool samples. Focus groups and key informant interviews assessed perspectives regarding medical aid delivered by foreigners.

Family and peer support matter for precoital and coital behaviors among adolescents in Lima.

We analyzed the association between sub-scales developed with adolescents and the outcomes of precoital behaviors and vaginal sex in Lima, Peru. Adolescent participants in key informant sessions operationalized concepts identified during qualitative concept mapping into several sub-scales. Face and content validity testing and pilot application with respondent debriefing were used to refine the sub-scales.