Medical, therapeutic, and recreational use of cannabis among young men who have sex with men living with HIV.

Cannabis plays a role in symptoms management in HIV, especially the alleviation of pain and nausea and stimulation of appetite, and prevalence of cannabis use in HIV-positive populations exceeds that of the general U.S. population.

Partner Notification Services for Patients with Established and New HIV Infection Leads to Diagnosis and Linkage of HIV-Positive Partners.

Offering people living with HIV the opportunity to refer partners for HIV testing is an efficient way of identifying new HIV diagnoses. This report describes the outcomes of physician-led partner services at an urban academic center. Patients with HIV VL > 1000 copies/mL in both inpatient and outpatient settings were offered partner notification services (PNS).

The multiplex social environments of young Black men who have sex with men: How online and offline social structures impact HIV prevention and sex behavior engagement.

In the United States, young Black men who have sex with men (YBMSM) remain disproportionately affected by HIV. The social networks in which YBMSM are embedded are generally understood to be critical factors in understanding their vulnerability. In this study, we acknowledge the relational richness of YBMSMs' social environments (what we define as multiplexity) and their increasing prioritization of online social networking sites (SNS).

Social Network Interventions for HIV Transmission Elimination.

Purpose Of Review: Network interventions for HIV prevention represent a potential area for growth in a globalizing world, where persons are more easily connected to one another through social media and networking applications. The basic tenets of network interventions such as (1) selection of a change agent, (2) segmentation, (3) induction, and (4) alteration represent myriad ways to structure network interventions for HIV prevention with the potential for large public health impact.

Recent Findings: Recent studies have employed the use of social networking websites such as Facebook to identify key persons to recruit others and disseminate information aimed at decreasing HIV transmission and improving safe sex practices among groups who are more vulnerable to HIV acquisition.

Corrigendum to: 2269. HIV-Positive Individuals Who Report Being in Care Are Less Likely to Be Co-Infected With an STI; an Analysis of "Network Testing," A Service Program Offering HIV and STI Testing Services to Individual at Risk for HIV.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofy210.1922.

Social-Environmental Resilience, PrEP Uptake, and Viral Suppression among Young Black Men Who Have Sex with Men and Young Black Transgender Women: the Neighborhoods and Networks (N2) Study in Chicago.

Young black men who have sex with men (YBMSM) and young black transgender women (TGW) have experienced a stark disparity in HIV prevention and care. Resilience, collective resources to adapt stressors or adversities, may improve HIV prevention and care outcomes. The present study investigated the association of resilience-based factors with PrEP uptake and viral suppression from a socioecological perspective among YBMSM and young black TGW.

Individual and Social Network Structure Characteristics Associated with Peer Change Agent Engagement and Impact in a PrEP Intervention.

Interventions that utilize the influence of peer change agents (PCAs) have been shown to be effective strategies for engaging key populations in HIV prevention. To date, little is known about the characteristics of PCAs associated with their effectiveness. Drawing on data from a peer leader PrEP intervention for young Black men who have sex with men (YBMSM) (N = 423), we evaluated the effects of experiential (i.

Impact of mail order pharmacy use and travel time to pharmacy on viral suppression among people living with HIV.

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of mail order pharmacy services and travel time to pharmacy on HIV viral suppression rates among people living with HIV. For adult patients receiving HIV care from 2010 to 2015 at an urban HIV care clinic, we collected demographics, pharmacy type, viral load, and patient home and pharmacy address. We geocoded addresses and measured travel time to pharmacy by car and public transportation.

Patterns of Exposure to Socio-structural Stressors and HIV Care Engagement Among Transgender Women of Color.

Transgender women are disproportionately affected by HIV and experiences of social adversity that may interfere with engagement in care and viral suppression. We used latent class analysis to examine patterns of social adversity and their impact on HIV care continuum outcomes in an urban sample of transgender women of color. Participants (n = 224) were median age 29 and 86% non-Hispanic Black.

An Observational Study of Hypertension and Thromboembolism Among Transgender Patients Using Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy.

Given evidence from cisgender patients that sex hormones can impact risk for some forms of cardiovascular disease (CVD), there are concerns regarding CVD among transgender patients using gender-affirming hormone therapy (HT). Using a retrospective cohort at a U.S.

Predictive Analytics for Retention in Care in an Urban HIV Clinic.

Consistent medical care among people living with HIV is essential for both individual and public health. HIV-positive individuals who are 'retained in care' are more likely to be prescribed antiretroviral medication and achieve HIV viral suppression, effectively eliminating the risk of transmitting HIV to others. However, in the United States, less than half of HIV-positive individuals are retained in care.

: success and stigma following release of the first sex-positive PrEP public health campaign.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an effective yet under-utilised method for preventing HIV transmission in high-risk groups. Despite ongoing social marketing to increase PrEP awareness, few studies have evaluated public responses. This paper contextualises negative responses to Chicago's PrEP4Love campaign.

Socio-Structural and Neighborhood Predictors of Incident Criminal Justice Involvement in a Population-Based Cohort of Young Black MSM and Transgender Women.

Black men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women are disproportionately affected by criminal justice involvement (CJI) and HIV. This study recruited 618 young Black MSM and transgender women in Chicago, IL, using respondent-driven sampling between 2013 and 2014. Random effects logistic regression evaluated predictors of incident CJI over 18 months of follow-up.

Facebook group affiliation ties, group topics, and HIV behavioral characteristics among young Black men who have sex with men: Potential for public health intervention.

•YBMSM were more likely to belong to personal/professional development groups.•YBMSM clustered around pairs of LGBTQ identity, sex, and nightlife groups.•Regular testers tended to belong to LGBTQ identity and nightlife groups.

Sex Partner Behavior Variation Related to Network Position of and Residential Proximity to Sex Partners Among Young Black Men Who Have Sex with Men.

This analysis examines how sex behaviors are influenced by a sex partner's network bridging position and the residential proximity between the two. The study sample consisted of 437 young black men who have sex with men (YBMSM) in Chicago and their sex partners (2013-2014). Dyadic analyses that clustered on individuals using generalized estimating equations (n = 1095 relationships) were conducted to assess the associations between different HIV-related sexual behaviors and the network position of and residential proximity to a partner.

Socio-structural Factors Associated with Mental Health, Substance Use, and HIV Risk Among Black Sexual and Gender Minorities in the House and Ball Community.

The House and Ball Community (HBC), a tight-knit social and cultural network comprised primarily of Black sexual and gender minorities (SGM), offers unique opportunities for HIV prevention that leverage naturally occurring social support networks. However, experiences of socioeconomic marginalization, stigma, violence, and trauma may impede HIV prevention efforts. This study analyzed data from 551 Black SGM recruited at HBC events in 2 cities over 24 months.

Correlations of HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis Indications and Uptake, Chicago, Illinois, 2015-2018.

To examine gaps in identification of preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) candidates, uptake, and use of PrEP by populations most likely to seroconvert. At a federally qualified health center in Chicago, Illinois, we used electronic medical records, prescription data, and our best approximation of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention PrEP guidelines to determine how many patients were indicated for PrEP relative to HIV diagnoses (indication:HIV), how many were on PrEP relative to indications (PrEP:indication), and how many were on PrEP relative to HIV diagnoses (PrEP:HIV). We compared these ratios across age, gender and orientation, race/ethnicity, and insurance.

Mortgage Discrimination and Racial/Ethnic Concentration Are Associated with Same-Race/Ethnicity Partnering among People Who Inject Drugs in 19 US Cities.

Racial/ethnic homophily in sexual partnerships (partners share the same race/ethnicity) has been associated with racial/ethnic disparities in HIV. Structural racism may partly determine racial/ethnic homophily in sexual partnerships. This study estimated associations of racial/ethnic concentration and mortgage discrimination against Black and Latino residents with racial/ethnic homophily in sexual partnerships among 7847 people who inject drugs (PWID) recruited from 19 US cities to participate in CDC's National HIV Behavioral Surveillance.

An Exploratory Study of Resilience, HIV-Related Stigma, and HIV Care Outcomes Among Men who have Sex with Men (MSM) Living with HIV in Louisiana.

The various forms of HIV-related stigma continue to serve as major barriers to HIV care and treatment among men who have sex with men (MSM). The study of resilience within the context of HIV-related stigma among MSM living with HIV represents a promising area of research to inform the development of future HIV interventions for this population. We examined resilience within the context of HIV related stigma among MSM living with HIV in Louisiana with a particular interest in how resilience may be more relevant for Black MSM.

A randomized controlled efficacy trial of an electronic screening and brief intervention for alcohol misuse in adolescents and young adults vulnerable to HIV infection: step up, test up study protocol.

Background: Young people account for more than a quarter of new HIV infections in the US, with the majority of cases among young men who have sex with men; young transgender women are also vulnerable to infection. Substance use, particularly alcohol misuse, is a driver of sexual transmission and a potential barrier to engagement in the HIV prevention and care continuum, however vulnerable youth are difficult to reach for substance use services due, in part, to complex social and structural factors and limited access to health care. The Community Prevention Services Task Force recommends electronic screening and brief intervention as an evidence-based intervention for the prevention of excessive alcohol consumption; however, no prior studies have extended this model to community-based populations of youth that are susceptible to HIV infection.

Awareness and Intent to Use Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Among African American Women in a Family Planning Clinic.

Due to the gap between cisgender women eligible for and those accessing pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention, it is critical to understand knowledge of and attitudes toward PrEP among HIV-vulnerable women. PrEP utilization is particularly low among African American women in the USA. Family planning clinics provide key access points to reach HIV-vulnerable African American women as well as to translate research findings into clinical practice.

Social norms associated with nonmedical opioid use in rural communities: a systematic review.

Prescription and illicit opioids were involved in over 42,000 deaths in the USA in 2016. Rural counties experience higher rates of opioid prescribing and, although opioid prescribing rates have fallen in recent years, the rate of decline is less in rural areas. The sociocultural context of rural life may impact opioid misuse in important ways; however, little research directly explores this possibility.

A modeling framework to inform preexposure prophylaxis initiation and retention scale-up in the context of 'Getting to Zero' initiatives.

Objective(s): 'Getting to Zero' (GTZ) initiatives aim to eliminate new HIV infections over a projected time frame. Increased preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) uptake among populations with the highest HIV incidence, such as young Black MSM, is necessary to accomplish this aim. Agent-based network models (ABNMs) can help guide policymakers on strategies to increase PrEP uptake.

Using social network analysis to examine alcohol use among adults: A systematic review.

Background: Alcohol use and abuse constitute a major public health problem and identifying their determinants is a priority. Social network analysis can indicate how characteristics of social networks are related to individual health behaviors. A growing number of studies have used social network analysis to examine how social network characteristics influence adult alcohol consumption, but this literature has never been systematically reviewed and summarized.

2269. HIV-Positive Individuals Who Report Being in Care Are Less Likely to Be Co-Infected With an STI; an Analysis of "Network Testing," A Service Program Offering HIV and STI Testing Services to Individual at Risk for HIV.

Background: The prevalence of STIs among people living with HIV (PLWH) has implications for HIV treatment as prevention and community efforts to stop the spread of HIV. We explored the factors associated with HIV/STI co-infection in HIV-positive individuals.

Methods: We analyzed data from our "Network Testing" service program, which was designed to expand HIV/STI testing services to high-risk individuals including gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) in Chicago's South side, a high HIV prevalent area.