Egocentric network data provide additional information for characterizing an individual's HIV risk profile

Abstract

Objective We investigated the hypothesis that partner-specific characteristics are important to improve an individual's risk characterization. Design It has been shown that the egocentric network structure is important to establish a person's risk for infection. Methods The study was cross-sectional in its design and enrolled 1231 volunteers at one HIV testing site in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and applied an adapted ego-network questionnaire. Each individual was interviewed about their own risk factors and those related to up to 10 sex partners. We used the dyadic data analysis method in which each relationship forms a record. Two receiver operator characteristic curves were generated, and the ability to correctly predict volunteers' HIV serostatus based on a model with characteristics of volunteers and sex partners and another with only volunteers' characteristics was evaluated. Results Partner-related variables were associated with HIV serostatus both for men and women. The model with volunteer/sex partners' characteristics performed better in discriminating between HIV-positive and negative volunteers only for men but not for women. The c statistic for men volunteers was 0.82 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.77–0.87] for the volunteer alone model and 0.88 (95% CI 0.86–0.91) for the combined model (P = 0.03). The values for women were 0.75 (95% CI 0.65–0.86) and 0.78 (95% CI 0.71–0.85), respectively (P = 0.71). Conclusion Ego-network theory-based approaches provide additional information for characterizing risk for HIV infection among men.

Methods for the Design and Analysis of Relationship and Partner Effects on Sexual Health

“…First is the application of network science methodology to the study of romantic and sexual relationships, particularly among networks that are characterized by relatively small size or high levels of homophily, such as Black young MSM who are known to have small and tight nit sexual networks (Clerkin et al, 2011; Newcomb & Mustanski, 2013). Such networks allow for rapid movement of infectious diseases through a population and indeed the collection of network information--even just from the perspective of individual participants--has shown to provide incremental information about HIV risk above and beyond self-reported behavior (Perisse et al, 2010). The approaches described above, which focus solely on dyadic information, fail to incorporate important information about the network of relationships among individuals within a community and we encourage future research that applies network science methods to the study of interpersonal processes and sexual health.…”

Sexual partner characteristics and incident rectalNeisseria gonorrhoeaeandChlamydia trachomatisinfections among gay men and other men who have sex with men (MSM): a prospective cohort in Abuja and Lagos, Nigeria

“…Egos were also asked to provide similar information for up to five of their most recent sexual partners (alters) at the first, third and fifth visits. The sexual network was delineated by a cue technique which has been shown to be effective in recalling sex partners in the past 1 year before the interview, 12 “I am going to ask you some questions about the men that you had anal sex with, starting with the man with whom you most recently had anal sex” in your sexual network. After the sexual networks were listed, egos were asked a detailed set of questions pertaining to each alter, including age, gender, HIV status, condom use, alcohol use, transactional sex and sex with anonymous partners.…”

“…Risk for STIs cannot be attributed to a single factor, but rather a combination of factors that may include risks associated with specific characteristics of an individual’s sexual partnerships. While there have been several studies that examined sexual network characteristics in relation to HIV infection, 12, 13 studies that used a longitudinal approach to examine sexual network characteristics in the context of STIs among MSM in sSA are lacking. Partner characteristics may influence STI transmission within these sexual networks.…”

Social Support Network Characteristics and Sexual Risk Taking Among a Racially/Ethnically Diverse Sample of Young, Urban Men Who Have Sex with Men

“…To date, evidence from a growing body of empirical research highlights the salience of understanding and elucidating the role that social network characteristics play in groups at heightened risk for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (6–10). Specifically, social network based analyses have been a key component in explaining the higher risk of HIV/AIDS among heterosexual African Americans, where higher rates of partner concurrency and social network characteristics such as size, composition and density have been associated with a range of HIV related sexual and injection drug use behaviors (11–17).…”