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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). In both cohorts, participants could choose between daily and event‐driven oral PrEP every 3 months. We used group‐based trajectory modelling to identify trajectories of PrEP use over time and their determinants. In addition, we estimated the incidence rate of chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis within these trajectories. Results: We included 516 MSM (n = 322 AMPrEP; n = 194 Be‐PrEP‐ared), of whom 24% chose event‐driven PrEP at PrEP initiation. Participants contributed 225,015 days of follow‐up (median = 508 days [IQR = 429−511]). Four distinct PrEP use trajectories were identified: ≤2 tablets per week (“low frequency,” 12% of the total population), 4 tablets per week (“variable,” 17%), “almost daily” (31%) and “always daily” (41%). Compared to participants with “low frequency” PrEP use, participants with “variable” (odds ratio [OR] = 2.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.04−4.60) and “almost daily” PrEP use were more often AMPrEP participants (OR = 2.64, 95% CI = 1.27−5.49). “Almost daily” PrEP users were more often employed (OR = 6.76, 95% CI = 2.10−21.75) and were younger compared to participants with “low frequency” PrEP use. In addition, the number of days on which anal sex occurred was lower among participants with “low frequency” PrEP use compared to the other groups (all p Conclusions: We uncovered four distinct PrEP use trajectories, pointing to different patterns of PrEP use in practice beyond the two‐regimen dichotomy. These trajectories were related to sexual behaviour and rates of sexually transmitted infection. Tailoring PrEP care according to different PrEP use patterns could be an important strategy to improve efficient PrEP delivery., INTRODUCTION Oral pre‐exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is highly effective in reducing the risk of HIV acquisition when taken correctly [1–3]. Among cisgender men who have sex with men (MSM), PrEP can [...]

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. Methods: We analysed pooled data from two prospective cohort studies among MSM: Be-PrEP-ared, Belgium and AMPrEP, the Netherlands. In both projects, participants could choose between daily and edPrEP at three-monthly study visits, when they were also screened for sexually transmitted infections including hepatitis C (HCV). We assessed the proportion choosing each regimen, and the determinants of choosing edPrEP at baseline. Additionally, we compared the incidence rates (IRs) of HCV, syphilis and chlamydia or gonorrhoea between regimens using Poisson regression. The study period was from 3 August 2015 until 24 September 2018. Results and discussion: We included 571 MSM, of whom 148 (25.9%) chose edPrEP at baseline. 31.7% of participants switched regimen at least once. After 28 months, 23.5% used edPrEP. Older participants (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 1.38 per 10 years, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.15 to 1.64) and those unemployed (aOR = 1.68, 95% CI = 1.03 to 1.75) were more likely to initially choose edPrEP. IR of HCV and syphilis did not differ between regimens, but the IR of chlamydia/gonorrhoea was higher among daily users (adjusted incidence rate ratio = 1.61, 95% CI = 1.35 to 1.94). Conclusions: A quarter of participants chose edPrEP at baseline and at 28 months this proportion was similar. Although the IR of HCV and syphilis were similar in the two regimens, the lower incidence of chlamydia and gonorrhoea among edPrEP users may suggest that less frequent STI testing of this group could be considered. Keywords: pre-exposure prophylaxis; sexually transmitted infections; event-driven PrEP; syphilis; men who have sex with men; HIV prevention & control, 1 | INTRODUCTION Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) with tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and emtricitabine, is efficacious for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention, provided that it is taken correctly [1-3]. Among men [...]

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). Methods: We analysed data from participants enrolled in AMPrEP who were taking edPrEP. We measured adherence through (1) a mobile application in which sexual behaviour and PrEP-use were recorded daily, (2) three-monthly self-completed questionnaires and (3) dried blood spot (DBS) samples collected around six, twelve and twenty-four months after PrEP initiation. We assessed the proportion of days with condomless anal sex (CAS) acts that were protected by PrEP, per partner type (i.e. steady partners, known casual partners, unknown casual partners), and the proportion of three-month periods during which PrEP was correctly used. Intracellular TFV-diphosphate (TFV-DP) concentrations were determined from DBS. Good adherence was defined as at least one tablet before and one tablet within 48 hours after a CAS act. Results: Between 11 September 2015 and 6 October 2019, 182 of 376 MSM (48.4%) used edPrEP for at least one three-month period. Of the 8224 CAS days that were reported in the app during edPrEP-use, we observed good protection for most CAS days involving steady partners (n = 1625/2455, 66.9%), known casual partners (n = 3216/3472, 92.6%) and unknown casual partners (n = 2074/2297, 90.3%). Men reported consistently correct PrEP-use in 851 (81.4%) of the 1046 three-month periods of edPrEP-use. The median TFV-DP concentration was 591 fmol/sample (interquartile range = 270 to 896). Conclusions: Adherence to edPrEP was high as determined from the online app and questionnaire. DBS measurements were consistent with two to three tablets per week on average. Keywords: HIV; Pre-exposure prophylaxis; On-demand PrEP; medication adherence; HIV prevention and control; men who have sex with men, 1 | INTRODUCTION Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been proven to be highly effective against the acquisition of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) [1,2]. The World Health Organization has therefore recommended that [...]