Publications by authors named "Mark Van Den Elshout"

Objective: HIV can be effectively prevented by oral HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). When PrEP was introduced, there was apprehension that condom use would decrease and STIs would increase. The purpose of this study was to investigate sexual behaviour and STI incidence among PrEP users.

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Background: An increasing number of countries are currently implementing or scaling-up HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) care. With the introduction of PrEP, there was apprehension that condom use would decline and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) would increase. To inform sexual health counselling and STI screening programmes, we aimed to study sexual behaviour and STI incidence among men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women who use long-term daily or event-driven PrEP.

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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.

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Objective: We assessed the association and concordance between self-reported oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) intake in a diary app and intraerythrocytic drug metabolite concentrations.

Design: AMPrEP was a prospective demonstration study providing daily and event-driven PrEP to MSM in Amsterdam, the Netherlands (2015-2020).

Methods: Participants could record their PrEP intake in a diary app.

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Background: Globally, migrant sex workers have a higher burden of sexually transmitted infections (STI)/human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This large study aimed to assess demographics, STI/HIV burden, and sexual health care-seeking behavior of first-generation migrant and second-generation migrant male sex workers who have sex with men (MSW-MSM) versus Western-born MSW-MSM.

Methods: Coded STI clinic consultations (n = 6970) from 3116 individual MSW-MSM attending any Dutch STI clinic between 2016 and 2021 were included.

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The hepatitis C virus (HCV) prevalence is high among men who have sex with men (MSM) with HIV in the Netherlands. Large reductions in HCV incidence among MSM with HIV, however, have occurred since treatment with direct-acting antivirals. Over the years, a broader understanding of the HCV epidemic has shown that HCV infections are not solely restricted to MSM with HIV, but they also occur among HIV-negative MSM.

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Objective: Studies have shown varying trends in incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among individuals using HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Characterization of individuals at increased risk for STIs may offer an opportunity for targeted STI screening.

Design: Group-based trajectory modeling.

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Introduction: Daily and event-driven oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) reduce the risk of HIV acquisition. PrEP use can vary over time, yet little is known about the trajectories of PrEP use irrespective of the chosen PrEP regimens among men who have sex with men (MSM).

Methods: Using data from a mobile, web-based diary application collected daily from 17 August 2015 until 6 May 2018, we analysed PrEP use and sexual behaviour in two large cohorts, AMPrEP (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) and Be-PrEP-ared (Antwerp, Belgium).

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Article Synopsis
  • Adherence to daily PrEP is crucial for its effectiveness in preventing HIV, and this study focused on identifying factors that influence adherence among men who have sex with men (MSM).
  • Researchers analyzed dried blood spots (DBS) from 263 participants at 12 and 24 months to measure tenofovir diphosphate (TFV-DP) concentrations, using multivariable regression to link sociodemographic and behavioral traits to adherence levels.
  • Results showed high TFV-DP concentrations (indicating good adherence), particularly among older men, those who had condomless sex with casual partners before starting PrEP, and users of an app that tracks their PrEP use, while longer PrEP duration was associated with
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Article Synopsis
  • A study assessed how COVID-19 restrictions impacted sexual healthcare, use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Amsterdam from 2019 to 2020.
  • Out of 305 MSM participants, 72.8% returned for sexual healthcare during the pandemic, with daily PrEP users being significantly more likely to do so.
  • PrEP use remained stable or increased among 55.2% to 58.1% of participants across three distinct pandemic periods, while STI incidence was notably lower during the first period compared to 2019, indicating varying effects over time.
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Introduction: Daily and event-driven PrEP are both efficacious in reducing the risk for HIV infection. However, the practice of event-driven PrEP (edPrEP) is less well studied, in particular when provided as an alternative to daily PrEP. We studied regimen preferences and switches, and sexually transmitted infection (STI) incidence.

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Objective: Improving adherence to preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) by providing automated feedback on self-reported PrEP use via a mobile application (app).

Design: Randomized clinical trial among MSM participating in the Amsterdam PrEP demonstration project (AMPrEP).

Methods: Eligible participants were randomized 1 : 1 to the control or intervention app.

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Introduction: Event-driven pre-exposure prophylaxis (edPrEP) with oral tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF)/emtricitabine (FTC) is highly effective for preventing HIV acquisition in men who have sex with men (MSM) and is preferred over daily PrEP by some MSM. However, it is largely unknown how well MSM adhere to edPrEP. We then aimed to assess PrEP protection during CAS among MSM using edPrEP and participating in the Amsterdam PrEP demonstration project (AMPrEP).

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Background: Optimising HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) provision requires insight into preferences of PrEP regimens and PrEP discontinuation. We assessed regimen switching and discontinuation and their determinants among men who have sex with men (MSM) participating in the Amsterdam PrEP demonstration project.

Methods: Between 3-August-2015 and 31-May-2016, we enrolled MSM ( = 374) and TGP ( = 2) in a prospective, longitudinal study.

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Background: We recently reported that the levels of activation, exhaustion, and terminal differentiation within the peripheral T-cell compartment were increased in men who have sex with men (MSM) compared with blood bank donors. During activation and differentiation, T cells undergo metabolic changes to maintain their energy demand.

Methods: The effect of cytomeglovirus (CMV) infection and risk behavior on the immune phenotype of peripheral T cells and the immune bioenergy metabolism profile in human immunodeficiency virus-negative MSM (with high or low sexual risk behavior) and blood bank donors was evaluated.

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Both the absence of cyclophilin D (CypD) and the presence of mitochondrial bound hexokinase II (mtHKII) protect the heart against ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. It is unknown whether CypD determines the amount of mtHKII in the heart. We examined whether CypD affects mtHK in normoxic, ischemic and preconditioned isolated mouse hearts.

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