Migration is associated with increased HIV vulnerability among young transgender women in Lima, Peru.

Background: Latin America-amidst its largest mass migration-has seen minimal progress in curbing new HIV infections. Transgender women (TW) in the region are disproportionately affected, but scant data examines HIV vulnerabilities alongside migration.

Methods: Between February-July 2022, 211 young TW ages 16-24 in Lima participated in a cross-sectional quantitative study accompanied by serological testing (HIV, syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhea, hepatitis B).

Centering autonomy and choice to support oral PrEP utilization among people who inject drugs: qualitative lessons from HPTN 094 INTEGRA.

Background: Oral Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is effective in preventing HIV transmission. However, despite high rates of HIV risk behaviors among people who inject drugs (PWID), this population remains underserved by current HIV prevention efforts in the United States. To address this challenge, we conducted an in-depth exploration of perspectives on using oral PrEP among PWID engaged in the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 094 INTEGRA Study.

The PrEP cascade in a sample of HIV-negative or unknown status adolescent and young adult transgender women in Peru.

Background: Transgender women are a key population in the HIV epidemic globally, including in Peru. This cross-sectional epidemiological study characterized the pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) cascade in adolescent and young adult transgender women in Peru to inform roll-out of early HIV prevention efforts.

Methods: Between February-July 2022, a community-recruited sample of HIV-negative or status unknown young transgender women ( = 140) in Peru completed a socio-behavioral survey and biological testing for HIV and bacterial STIs.

Enhancing daily oral PrEP adherence with digital communications: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) stands as an effective tool in preventing HIV transmission among individuals at risk of HIV infection. However, the effectiveness of daily oral PrEP is contingent on the adherence of its users, which can pose a challenge for many individuals. Various studies have explored different interventions aimed at bolstering PrEP adherence.

Motivations for enrollment in a COVID-19 ring-based post-exposure prophylaxis trial: qualitative examination of participant experiences.

Background: Ring-based studies are a novel research design commonly used for research involving infectious diseases: contacts of newly infected individuals form a ring that is targeted for interventions (e.g., vaccine, post-exposure prophylaxis).

Interconnected influence: Unraveling purdue pharmaceutical's role in the global response to the opioid crisis.

Background: The global pharmaceutical industry has a long history of prioritizing profits over public health through widespread practices such as price gouging, deceptive marketing, and fraud. A prominent example of this issue is the mislabeling and mass-marketing of OxyContin by Purdue Pharmaceuticals (Purdue) that catalyzed the opioid crises in and beyond the United States.

Methods: Guided by Actor-Network Theory, this case study employs Visual Network Analysis to map the actors-networks involved in responding to the harms caused by Purdue.

The "Cycle" of HIV: Limits of Personal Responsibility in HIV Vulnerability Among Transgender Adolescents and Young Women in Lima, Peru.

Globally, transgender women (TW) face a high burden of the HIV epidemic. In Peru, HIV prevalence among TW rises at age 25, indicating a need to understand HIV vulnerability as adolescents reach adulthood. The life course of TW is often marked by abuse, discrimination and poverty fueled by transphobic stigma.

Social, economic, and physical side effects impact PrEP uptake and persistence among transgender women in Peru.

Introduction: Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV-1 infection is over 99% effective in protecting against HIV acquisition when used consistently and appropriately. However, PrEP uptake and persistent use remains suboptimal, with a substantial gap in utilization among key populations who could most benefit from PrEP. In Latin America specifically, there is poor understanding of barriers to PrEP uptake and persistence among transgender (trans) women.

HIV vulnerabilities and psychosocial health among young transgender women in Lima, Peru: results from a bio-behavioural survey.

Introduction: Peruvian young transgender women (YTW) ages 16-24 years are a critical but understudied group for primary HIV prevention efforts, due to sharp increases in HIV prevalence among TW ages 25 years and older.

Methods: Between February and July 2022, a cross-sectional quantitative study with YTW ages 16-24 years in Peru (N = 211) was conducted consisting of a bio-behavioural survey accompanied by laboratory-based testing for HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Bivariate and multivariable Poisson regression models were used to estimate prevalence ratios between socio-demographic and behavioural characteristics and HIV status.

A data-driven approach to implementing the HPTN 094 complex intervention INTEGRA in local communities.

Background: HIV burden in the US among people who inject drugs (PWID) is driven by overlapping syndemic factors such as co-occurring health needs and environmental factors that synergize to produce worse health outcomes among PWID. This includes stigma, poverty, and limited healthcare access (e.g.

The anti-gender threat: An ethical, democratic, and scientific imperative for NIH research/ers.

Anti-gender campaigns in the United States and globally have promoted policies and legislation that significantly limit bodily autonomy for women, transgender, and nonbinary people. This attack on the human rights of women and gender-diverse communities not only reflects implicit and explicit bias but also detrimentally impacts population health and well-being. We outline the domestic and global rise of anti-gender campaigns and their deep historical connections to broader forms of discrimination and inequality to argue that there is an ethical, democratic, and scientific imperative to more critically center and contextualize gender in health research.

Experiences of child sex trafficking identification among Ontario pediatric emergency department healthcare providers: A qualitative study.

Background And Objective: More than 60 % of people exposed to sex trafficking access hospital emergency departments (ED), making the ED a critical setting for child sex trafficking identification. Children exposed to sex trafficking (CEST) do not always recognize that they are being exploited. With many ED leaders confirming that there are no formal processes or assessment tools to screen for human trafficking in EDs, it is especially challenging for healthcare providers to identify CEST.

A population-based time-series analysis of opioid agonist treatment dispensed during pregnancy.

Background And Aims: Identifying effective opioid treatment options during pregnancy is a high priority due to the growing prevalence of opioid use disorder across North America. We assessed the temporal impact of three population-level interventions on the use of opioid agonist treatment (OAT) during pregnancy in Ontario, Canada.

Design: This was a population-based time-series analysis to identify trends in the monthly prevalence of pregnant people dispensed methadone and buprenorphine.

"This Is Actually a Really Unique Moment in Time": Navigating Long-Acting HIV Treatment and HIV Cure Research with Analytical Treatment Interruptions-A Qualitative Interview Study in the United States.

Advancements in long-acting (LA) HIV treatment and cure research with analytical treatment interruptions (ATIs) have generated important scientific and implementation questions. There is an urgent need to examine challenges navigating the evolving HIV treatment and cure research landscape. From August to October 2022, we conducted 26 semistructured interviews with biomedical researchers and community members representing a predominantly woman demographic to explore the complexity of navigating the rapidly evolving HIV therapeutic and HIV cure research landscape.

Exploring ecosocial contexts of alcohol use and misuse during the COVID-19 pandemic among urban refugee youth in Kampala, Uganda: Multi-method findings.

Urban refugees may be disproportionately affected by socio-environmental stressors that shape alcohol use, and this may have been exacerbated by additional stressors in the COVID-19 pandemic. This multi-method study aimed to understand experiences of, and contextual factors associated with, alcohol use during the pandemic among urban refugee youth in Kampala, Uganda. We conducted a cross-sectional survey ( = 335), in-depth individual interviews (IDI) ( = 24), and focus groups ( = 4) with urban refugee youth in Kampala.

Latin America at the margins? Implications of the geographic and epistemic narrowing of 'global' health.

To explore the narrowing of the concept of 'global' in global health, this article traces how Latin America has held a place of both privilege and power as well as marginalisation in the field. We employ a modified extended case method to examine how Latin America has been 'seen' and 'heard' in understandings of global health, underscoring the region's shifting role as a key site for research and practice in 'tropical medicine' from the mid-nineteenth century through World War II, to a major player and recipient of development assistance throughout the 'international health' era after World War II until the late twentieth century, to a region progressively marginalised within 'global health' since the mid-1980s/1990s. We argue that the progressive marginalisation of Latin America and Southern theory has not only hurt health equity and services, but also demonstrates the fundamental flaws in contemporary 'global' thinking.

HIV Vulnerabilities Associated with Water Insecurity, Food Insecurity, and Other COVID-19 Impacts Among Urban Refugee Youth in Kampala, Uganda: Multi-method Findings.

Food insecurity (FI) and water insecurity (WI) are linked with HIV vulnerabilities, yet how these resource insecurities shape HIV prevention needs is understudied. We assessed associations between FI and WI and HIV vulnerabilities among urban refugee youth aged 16-24 in Kampala, Uganda through individual in-depth interviews (IDI) (n = 24), focus groups (n = 4), and a cross-sectional survey (n = 340) with refugee youth, and IDI with key informants (n = 15). Quantitative data was analysed via multivariable logistic and linear regression to assess associations between FI and WI with: reduced pandemic sexual and reproductive health (SRH) access; past 3-month transactional sex (TS); unplanned pandemic pregnancy; condom self-efficacy; and sexual relationship power (SRP).

Both/And: Mixed methods analysis of network composition, communication patterns, and socio-economic support within social networks of transgender women involved in sex work in Lima, Peru.

Introduction: Social networks contribute to normative reinforcement of HIV prevention strategies, knowledge sharing, and social capital, but little research has characterized the social networks of transgender women (TW) in Latin America. We conducted a mixed methods analysis of three network clusters of TW in Lima, Peru, to evaluate network composition, types of support exchanged, and patterns of communication.

Methods: We recruited TW residing in or affiliated with three "casas trans" (houses shared among TW) in Lima between April-May 2018.