Changes in Sexual Behavior, PrEP Adherence, and Access to Sexual Health Services Because of the COVID-19 Pandemic Among a Cohort of PrEP-Using MSM in the South

Pampati, Sanjana; Emrick, Kayla; Siegler, Aaron J; Jones, Jeb

doi:10.1097/qai.0000000000002640

Cited by 96 publications

(105 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Our results differ from other studies that evaluated STD prevalence using the same methodology as ours [ 4 , 5 ]. In our case, we did not observe a significant reduction in cases of urethritis in our health region in spite of strict lockdown from mid-March to the end of May, probably due to the ease of access to emergency services.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Impact of the SARS-COV-2 Pandemic Lockdown on Sexually Transmitted Urethritis in a Spanish Health Region

Torres¹,

Fernández²,

E³

et al. 2021

Cureus

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BackgroundThe incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STD) has increased in recent years, especially in the young population. Urethritis is one of the most common clinical presentations of STD in emergency departments. During the SARS-COV-2 pandemic, in Spain lockdown lasted almost three months, and mobility was greatly restricted. This is the first study of these characteristics conducted in Spain. MethodsA cross-sectional study of all patients treated for clinical symptoms of urethritis between March and June 2019 and between March and June 2020 was conducted. We evaluated patients' sociodemographic and clinical variables. ResultsSeventy-nine patients were included in the study: 37 in 2019 and 38 in 2020 of whom 94.9% were men. The main symptoms were urethral discharge (59.5%) followed by dysuria (26.6%). Risky sexual relations were reported by 63.2% of patients in 2019, and this percentage decreased to 43.9% in 2020. ConclusionsThe number of patients attending an emergency department in our health region for urethritis did not undergo any variations between 2019 and 2020. No significant reduction in the number of cases of urethritis was observed, probably because people continued with unsafe sexual relations despite the social restrictions and difficulties posed by the lockdown.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…However, another study [4] in Cuba showed that cases of syphilis and gonorrhea decreased significantly during the period of social restrictions imposed due to the first wave of COVID-19. Events were similar in other countries [5].…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 74%

Impact of the SARS-COV-2 Pandemic Lockdown on Sexually Transmitted Urethritis in a Spanish Health Region

Torres¹,

Fernández²,

E³

et al. 2021

Cureus

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“…23,24 Early research suggests that initiation of social distancing measures changed the patterns of PrEP use, and although some individuals chose to cease PrEP owing to changes in sexual behavior, others experienced difficulties in accessing testing and monitoring services. 25 This evaluation shares the barriers to PrEP access in PH-partnered telehealth programs during a PH crisis but also highlights the strategies used by an integrated program to continue CTR and PrEP services delivery.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Bringing Iowa TelePrEP to Scale: A Qualitative Evaluation

Chasco

Shafer²,

Dillon

et al. 2021

American Journal of Preventive Medicine

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Introduction: Regional partnerships between public health organizations and telehealth programs have the potential to expand access to HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis in rural and small urban areas. However, little is known about the best practices for such partnerships. Iowa TelePrEP, a regional public health-partnered telehealth model created by the Iowa Department of Public Health and the University of Iowa, expanded statewide between 2017 and 2019. This qualitative evaluation assessed the barriers and facilitators to statewide expansion and the lessons learned.Methods: Key informants from public health partners across Iowa participated in a focus group and interviews between May 2019 and November 2020. Public health partners included local health departments and disease intervention specialist/partner services programs. Qualitative data were transcribed and thematically coded. Program documents and routinely collected reporting data were reviewed to provide the context for qualitative findings. Data were analyzed in 2020.Results: TelePrEP expanded in 4 phases through partnerships with 12 public health partners. Public health partners referred 708 clients with pre-exposure prophylaxis indications to telenavigation; of these, 258 were navigated to TelePrEP, and 167 initiated pre-exposure prophylaxis. The facilitators of expansion included early public health partner engagement, model acceptability and inclusion of a navigator, and adaptability to local public health partner settings. The barriers included the need to adapt communication and processes to varying public health partners, difficulty in engaging underserved populations, the COVID-19 pandemic, and perceived gaps in understanding client outcomes.Conclusions: Partnerships between regional telehealth programs and local health departments can expand to the state level and increase the capacity to implement pre-exposure prophylaxis in rural and small urban settings. Partnerships should consider how to balance program adaptability to local public health partners with standardization and scalability.

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“… 12 , 14 Emerging evidence in Oregon, California, and Georgia is also consistent with the declines in STD reporting observed in this report. 15 - 17 Some researchers have documented starker declines in STD testing among asymptomatic clients when compared to symptomatic cases. 18 The findings in this study are consistent with this notion given the largest decrease in STD reporting was observed among chlamydial cases, which are largely detected through routine screenings.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of COVID-19 Lockdowns on Sexual Health Care Utilization and STD Reporting, Maricopa County

Bell

Canepa

Kreis

et al. 2021

INQUIRY

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The Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) Clinic remained operational during a 6-week statewide Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Stay-at-Home Order. The present study sought to evaluate the effect of the Stay-at-Home Order on countywide STD reporting and uptake of sexual health services. We compared countywide daily median STD reporting and MCDPH STD clinic attendance across 3 timeframes; (1) Pre-Lockdown (01/01/2020–03/30/2020); (2) Lockdown (03/31/2020–05/15/2020); and (3) Post-Lockdown (05/16/2020–12/31/2020). STD reporting was characterized as incident chlamydia, gonorrhea, and primary and secondary syphilis. Clinic attendance was characterized as clients visiting through express testing or provider visits. Differences in STD reporting and clinic attendance were evaluated using non-parametric testing. Comparing Pre-Lockdown to Lockdown, we observed significant declines in the daily median chlamydia case reporting (−22%) and clinic express testing attendance (−29%). Comparing Lockdown to Post-Lockdown, we observed significant increases in daily median chlamydia and gonorrhea case reporting (+20%, +15%; respectively) and clinic express testing and provider visits (+42%, +20%; respectively). No significant difference was observed in countywide syphilis reporting across the 3 timeframes. Declines in STD reporting were observed countywide during the lockdown and were concurrent with declines in attendance observed at the MCDPH STD Clinic. Maintenance of clinic operations during the lockdown allowed for continued uptake of STD testing, diagnosis, treatment, and partner services. This study of sexual health care utilization at the public STD clinic in Maricopa County, Arizona, found reduced testing and provider visits contributed to lower countywide STD reporting during the Arizona COVID-19 Stay-at-Home Order.

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Changes in Sexual Behavior, PrEP Adherence, and Access to Sexual Health Services Because of the COVID-19 Pandemic Among a Cohort of PrEP-Using MSM in the South

Cited by 96 publications

References 21 publications

Impact of the SARS-COV-2 Pandemic Lockdown on Sexually Transmitted Urethritis in a Spanish Health Region

Impact of the SARS-COV-2 Pandemic Lockdown on Sexually Transmitted Urethritis in a Spanish Health Region

Bringing Iowa TelePrEP to Scale: A Qualitative Evaluation

Impact of COVID-19 Lockdowns on Sexual Health Care Utilization and STD Reporting, Maricopa County

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