1. Effects of a Mobile Health Intervention to Promote HIV Self-testing with MSM in China: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
- Author
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Zhu, Xiaofang, Zhang, Wenhan, Operario, Don, Zhao, Yue, Shi, Anxia, Zhang, Zhihua, Gao, Pan, Perez, Ashley, Wang, Jun, Zaller, Nickolas, Yang, Cui, Sun, Yehuan, and Zhang, Hongbo
- Subjects
HIV prevention ,CONFIDENCE intervals ,HEALTH promotion ,LONGITUDINAL method ,EVALUATION of medical care ,MEDICAL referrals ,MEDICAL screening ,QUESTIONNAIRES ,STATISTICAL sampling ,HEALTH self-care ,TELEMEDICINE ,TIME ,TEXT messages ,SAFE sex ,RANDOMIZED controlled trials ,MOBILE apps ,MEN who have sex with men ,SEXUAL partners ,DESCRIPTIVE statistics ,ODDS ratio - Abstract
This study tested a mobile health (mHealth) intervention program entitled WeTest, delivered via the WeChat mobile app, to promote oral HIV self-testing (HIVST) among MSM in Hefei, China. A total of 100 MSM participants enrolled, completed baseline assessment, were randomly assigned to intervention or control, and completed 6-month follow-up surveys. Intervention participants (n = 50) received two oral HIVST kits and access to WeTest, a private WeChat group which provided app-based messages and referrals to health services related to HIV. Control participants (n = 50) received two oral HIVST kits only. All participants received instructions to upload photographic results of their oral HIVST, which were sent to the project counselor via a secure WeChat online portal; immediate contact and referrals were made to any participants who tested HIV-positive. In GEE analyses adjusting for time effects and baseline confounders, intervention participants had significantly higher rates of HIV testing (adjusted rate ratio RR = 1.99, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.07–3.84) and, in particular, higher rates of testing via oral HIVST (adjusted RR = 2.17, 95% CI 1.08–4.37) compared with the control group. Significant time effects were also found such that all participants, regardless of group allocation, had significantly higher rates of reporting consistent condom use with main partners (adjusted RR = 18.13, 95% CI 5.19–63.31) and with non-main partners (adjusted RR = 5.33, 95% CI 2.35–12.08). Findings from this study provide evidence for the feasibility, acceptability and preliminary effects of this mHealth approach to promoting oral HIVST among MSM in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2019
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