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Black and Hispanic/Latino sexual minority men and gender diverse (SMMGD) individuals are disproportionately impacted by the HIV epidemic. Uptake and adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is suboptimal among SMMGD Black and Hispanic/Latino individuals, but most research has approached this population as homogenous (e.g., a group operationalized as men who have sex with men). Bisexual men are less likely to disclose their sexual identity and report more mental health problems than their gay counterparts, but there is less attention to the impact of different sexual identities on PrEP use over time. We utilized data from three waves of a national longitudinal study (2020-2021) to characterize Black and Hispanic/Latino SMMGD participants' PrEP use including: 1) PrEP uptake during the study; 2) consistent PrEP use across the study; and 3) discontinuation of PrEP use since study baseline. We found bisexual men were significantly less likely than gay men to be consistent PrEP users and were more likely to discontinue PrEP use over the course of the study. Of the sample who reported PrEP use across surveys, 10% initiated PrEP during the study period, 0% of whom were bisexual. Additionally, bisexual participants reported statistically significantly higher anticipated PrEP stigma relative to gay participants. These findings have implications for HIV prevention interventions. Given the differences in PrEP experiences as a function of sexual identity, researchers and clinicians should consider the disruptive role of stigma (both biphobia and anticipated PrEP stigma) in PrEP care and adherence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Most human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) seroconversions in people who have initiated preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) occur in the context of insufficient adherence. We describe participants who seroconverted after being dispensed PrEP in a large PrEP implementation study in Australia. Methods Expanded PrEP Implementation in Communities in New South Wales was an implementation study of daily oral PrEP in individuals aged ≥18 years at high risk for acquiring HIV. HIV seroconversions were defined as a positive HIV test by either antigen, antibody, or detectable HIV viral load after enrollment. Insufficient adherence, measured by dispensing logs or participant self-report, was defined as <4 PrEP doses per week. Results A total of 9596 participants were enrolled and dispensed PrEP between 1 March 2016 and 30 April 2018; 30 were diagnosed with HIV by 31 March 2019. The median (interquartile range [IQR]) age was 31 (25–38) years, all identified as male, 29 (97%) identified as gay or homosexual, and 20 (69%) lived in a postcode with a low concentration of gay male residents. The median (IQR) days from first PrEP dispensing to diagnosis was 409 (347–656). There was no evidence that participants who seroconverted had been sufficiently adherent to PrEP. Nineteen (63%) participants who seroconverted were diagnosed with chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis, or new hepatitis C infection. One participant had resistance to emtricitabine (M184V mutation) at diagnosis. Conclusions Participants who seroconverted were insufficiently adherent to PrEP despite being at high risk for acquiring HIV. Understanding the reasons for poor PrEP adherence in individuals who subsequently acquire HIV is critical to improving PrEP effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Men who have sex with men (MSM) who use stimulants are at increased risk for HIV infection. Adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) reduces the risk of HIV infection. We evaluated the efficacy of the individualized Texting for Adherence Building (iTAB) intervention for PrEP adherence compared to standard of care (SoC) among 119 MSM who use stimulants (cocaine, methamphetamine and/or other amphetamine) from the California Collaborative Treatment Group 595 randomized control trial. Method: Three ordered levels of PrEP adherence (non-adherence, adequate adherence, and near-perfect adherence) were compared between intervention arms across study visits (weeks 12 and 48) using ordinal logistic regressions. Results: The effect of intervention arm was not significant in the final model; however, there was a 38% decrease in odds (OR = 0.62, p=.023) of having near-perfect adherence (versus non-adherence or adequate adherence) at week 48 compared to week 12, indicating a significant effect of time. In a follow-up analysis examining week 48 only, logistic regression examining PrEP adherence showed that receiving iTAB (compared to SoC) trended toward higher odds of near-perfect adherence relative to adequate adherence (OR = 2.48, p=.061). Higher HIV knowledge resulted in higher odds (OR = 1.72, p=.020) of near-perfect adherence (versus non-adherence or adequate adherence). Conclusion: HIV knowledge may influence PrEP adherence, and most notably, the iTAB intervention may support near-perfect adherence relative to adequate adherence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]