The Best Predictor of Future Behavior May Be the Past: Exploring Behavior Change in Men Who Have Sex with Men Using Pre-exposure Prophylaxis in the Netherlands.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) use prevents HIV transmission, and may lead to changes in sexual behavior. We aimed to explore sexual behavior over time, and identify predictors of behavior change in men who have sex with men (MSM) using PrEP at sexual health centers (SHC) in the Netherlands. We used longitudinal data from the national STI surveillance database (January 2018-June 2021) of HIV-negative MSM who first initiated PrEP in the national PrEP pilot.

Substantial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the reported number of diagnosed chronic hepatitis C virus infections in the Netherlands, 2019-2021.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has widespread consequences for health facilities, social contacts, and health-seeking behaviour, affecting the incidence, diagnosis and reporting of other infectious diseases. We examined trends in reported chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections and associated transmission routes in the Netherlands to identify the potential impact of COVID-19 on access to healthcare (testing) services.

Methods: We analysed notification data of patients with chronic HCV reported to the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System from January 2019 until December 2021 in the Netherlands.

Availability and accessibility of HIV self-tests and self-sample kits at community pharmacies in the Netherlands.

Background: In 2016 the WHO declared HIV self-testing and self-sampling an effective and safe test option that can reduce testing barriers. HIV self-tests and self-sampling kits (HIVST/HIVSS) are available for purchase at Dutch community pharmacies since 2019. We investigated the availability and accessibility of HIVST/HIVSS in community pharmacies, and factors associated with test availability.

MSM with HIV: Improving prevalence and risk estimates by a Bayesian small area estimation modelling approach for public health service areas in the Netherlands.

Despite close monitoring of HIV infections amongst MSM (MSMHIV), the true prevalence can be masked for areas with small population density or lack of data. This study investigated the feasibility of small area estimation with a Bayesian approach to improve HIV surveillance. Data from EMIS-2017 (Dutch subsample, n = 3,459) and the Dutch survey SMS-2018 (n = 5,653) were utilized.