HIV Treatment Knowledge in the Context of “Treatment as Prevention” (TasP)

Abstract

According to 2012 universal ART guidelines, as part of "treatment as prevention" (TasP), all people living with HIV (PLWH) should immediately initiate antiretroviral therapy post-diagnosis to facilitate viral suppression. PLWH who are virally suppressed have no risk of sexually transmitting HIV. This study used descriptive analysis of quantitative data (N=99) and thematic analysis of qualitative interviews (n=36) to compare participants recruited from a hospital-based detoxification (detox) unit, largely diagnosed with HIV pre-2012 (n=63) vs. those recruited from public, urban sexual health clinics (SHCs), mainly diagnosed in 2012 or later (n=36). Detox participants were significantly more knowledgeable than SHC participants about HIV treatment, except regarding TaSP. SHC participants' desire for rapid linkage to care and ART initiation was in line with 2012 universal ART guidelines and TasP messaging regarding viral suppression. More Terms of use and reuse: academic research for non-commercial purposes, see here for full terms. https://www.springer.com/aamterms-v1

Changing Knowledge and Attitudes Towards HIV Treatment-as-Prevention and “Undetectable = Untransmittable”: A Systematic Review

“…An online survey of people without HIV in Italy found that 33% of behaviorally at-risk heterosexual respondents were aware of TasP, compared to 42% of MSM [ 32 ]. Just 57% of people with HIV at a hospital detox unit in New York City believed a TasP message was accurate [ 33 ].…”

MASI, a Smartphone App to Improve Treatment Adherence Among South African Adolescents and Young Adults With HIV: Protocol for a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

“…All other measures are exploratory and include HIV/AIDS knowledge and stigma. HIV/AIDS knowledge will be measured using a scale adapted from a United States Agency for International Development toolkit for transition of care for adolescents with HIV [ 45 ] and a scale measuring HIV treatment knowledge in context of treatment as prevention [ 46 ]. Stigma will also be measured with the Adolescents Living with HIV Stigma Scale, which includes internalized stigma (5 items), anticipated stigma (2 items), and enacted HIV stigma (3 items) [ 44 , 47 , 48 ].…”

Improving HIV testing, linkage, and retention in care among South African men through U=U messaging: A study protocol for two sequential hybrid type 1 effectiveness- implementation randomized controlled trials

“…Particularly for men, the U = U message can accelerate progress towards the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets by reducing anxiety associated with HIV testing (1st 95), encouraging ART initiation (2nd 95), and reducing fear of transmitting HIV to sexual partners by promoting treatment adherence to achieve viral suppression (3rd 95) (20,21). While there is growing knowledge of TasP/U = U among PLHIV in Western and high-income countries, the reach and penetration of the U = U message in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has been limited (22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35) and few studies have evaluated the impact of accessible and relatable U = U messages on HIV testing and ART initiation and adherence in the region (36-38). To address these gaps, rigorous evaluations of interventions that incorporate U = U messages are needed, especially among cis-gendered heterosexual men in high prevalence settings.…”