Stakeholder perspectives on integrating doxycycline postexposure prophylaxis into Kenyan HIV PrEP programmes.

Objectives: Doxycycline postexposure prophylaxis (doxyPEP) is an efficacious sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention strategy. Implementation guidelines recommend a focus on people with prior STIs and/or those taking HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), but trial results are insufficient for interventions to enter guidelines and clinical practice. The purpose of this paper is to describe potential barriers and facilitators for successful implementation strategies of doxyPEP in resource-limited settings.

Understanding barriers and facilitators to doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis adherence among young women in western kenya: a qualitative study.

Sexually transmitted infection (STI) rates are high globally, particularly in regions like sub-Saharan Africa, where there is also a disproportionate burden of HIV. Doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (doxyPEP) is a novel strategy intended to prevent bacterial STIs following potential exposure. The dPEP Kenya Study, the first trial of doxyPEP for STI prevention among cisgender women, found that doxyPEP did not reduce STIs in the setting of low use of doxyPEP by objective drug concentrations.

Exploring supportive roles for global north investigators in global health research.

Many academics are increasingly pushing for solutions to address inequitable partnership dynamics in global health research and practice. Efforts to improve equity in collaborations have prompted academic institutions to grapple with promotion and tenure criteria (usually Global North institutions), as these criteria often require leadership on grants, publications, and conference presentations for advancement. From inequitable funding opportunities to the invisibilization of Global South researchers, these components are rooted in normalizing and upholding unequal power dynamics.

PrEP Awareness, Interest, and Use among Women Who Inject Drugs in Seattle, Washington: A Mixed Methods Study.

Women who inject drugs (WWID) are disproportionately affected by HIV and experience multiple barriers to PrEP use. We conducted a mixed methods study to assess PrEP awareness, interest, and use, and determinants of PrEP utilization among WWID at three community sites in Seattle, Washington from March-May 2023. Participants were ≥ 18 years old, spoke English, identified as women, had a history of injecting drugs, and self-reported a negative or unknown HIV status.

Event-driven PrEP beyond cisgender men who have sex with men.

Despite advancements in existing antiretroviral-based prevention strategies, including daily oral, locally acting, and injectable options, there is a pressing need for more inclusive and flexible event-driven pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) strategies for all. Event-driven or intermittent dosing of PrEP in populations beyond cisgender men who have sex with men would offer a promising alternative by fitting prevention into the diverse lifestyles of affected populations and thereby advancing health equity. Evidence from PrEP clinical trials, pharmacokinetic studies, modelling studies, and real-world observational research suggests that event-driven PrEP could be a flexible and inclusive option, yet optimal dosing has not been established across sex and gender spectrums.

Filling in the Gaps: Updates on Doxycycline Prophylaxis for Bacterial Sexually Transmitted Infections.

Over the past two decades, cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) due to syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia have been rising in the United States, disproportionately among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM), as well as racial and ethnic minorities of all genders. In this review, we address updates about the evidence on doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (doxy-PEP) for prevention of bacterial STIs, including efficacy, safety, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), acceptability, modeling population impact, and evolving guidelines for use. Equitable implementation of doxy-PEP will require evaluation of who is offered and initiates it, understanding patterns of use and longer-term STI incidence and AMR, provider training, and tailored community education.

Doxycycline Prophylaxis to Prevent Sexually Transmitted Infections in Women.

Background: Doxycycline postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) has been shown to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among cisgender men and transgender women, but data from trials involving cisgender women are lacking.

Methods: We conducted a randomized, open-label trial comparing doxycycline PEP (doxycycline hyclate, 200 mg taken within 72 hours after condomless sex) with standard care among Kenyan women 18 to 30 years of age who were receiving preexposure prophylaxis against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The primary end point was any incident infection with , , or .

Challenges and Solutions to STI Control in the Era of HIV and STI Prophylaxis.

Purpose Of Review: This article reviews current efforts to control bacterial sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) users and outlines the opportunities and challenges to controlling STIs within HIV PrEP programs.

Recent Findings: The incidence of STIs continues to rise globally especially among HIV PrEP users, with an estimated 1 in 4 PrEP users having a curable bacterial STI. STIs and HIV comprise a syndemic needing dual interventions.

Characteristics of Kenyan women using HIV PrEP enrolled in a randomized trial on doxycycline postexposure prophylaxis for sexually transmitted infection prevention.

Introduction: The global incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) has been rapidly increasing over the past decade, with more than one million curable STIs being acquired daily. Young women in sub-Saharan Africa have a high prevalence and incidence of both curable STIs and HIV. The use of doxycycline as a prophylaxis to prevent STIs is promising; however, clinical trials, to date, have only been conducted among men who have sex with men (MSM) in high-income settings.

A linked physiologically based pharmacokinetic model for hydroxychloroquine and metabolite desethylhydroxychloroquine in SARS-CoV-2(-)/(+) populations.

Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) is Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved for malaria, systemic and chronic discoid lupus erythematosus, and rheumatoid arthritis. Because HCQ has a proposed multimodal mechanism of action and a well-established safety profile, it is often investigated as a repurposed therapeutic for a range of indications. There is a large degree of uncertainty in HCQ pharmacokinetic (PK) parameters which complicates dose selection when investigating its use in new disease states.

Predominance of High-Level Tetracycline-Resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Kenya: Implications for Global Implementation of Doxycycline Postexposure Prophylaxis for Prevention of Sexually Transmitted Infections.

Using archived Neisseria gonorrhoeae samples from 2008 to 2012, the prevalence of tet (M) genemediating high-level tetracycline resistance in N. gonorrhoeae was 96% among 50 Kenyan women. Determining the local and national prevalence of gonococcal tetracycline resistance and surveillance of gonococcal antimicrobial resistance can inform the implementation of doxycycline postexposure prophylaxis for STI prevention.

Using time-weighted average change from baseline of SARS-CoV-2 viral load to assess impact of hydroxychloroquine as postexposure prophylaxis and early treatment for COVID-19.

Two randomized controlled trials demonstrated no clinical benefit of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) for either postexposure prophylaxis or early treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Using data from these studies, we calculated the time-weighted average change from baseline SARS-CoV-2 viral load and demonstrated that HCQ did not affect viral clearance.

Doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis for prevention of sexually transmitted infections among Kenyan women using HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis: study protocol for an open-label randomized trial.

Background: Women in Africa face disproportionate risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) acquisition, accounting for more than half of new infections in Africa and similarly face a disproportionate burden of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Very high STI prevalence is being observed globally, especially among people taking pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention. Doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis (dPEP) has been proposed as an STI prevention strategy to reduce chlamydia, syphilis, and possibly gonorrhea, and trials are ongoing among cisgender men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women who are taking PrEP in high-income settings.

Implementation of a fully remote randomized clinical trial with cardiac monitoring.

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has challenged researchers performing clinical trials to develop innovative approaches to mitigate infectious risk while maintaining rigorous safety monitoring.

Methods: In this report we describe the implementation of a novel exclusively remote randomized clinical trial (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04354428) of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin for the treatment of the SARS-CoV-2-mediated COVID-19 disease which included cardiovascular safety monitoring.

Correlates of 90-Day Mortality Among People Who Do and Do Not Inject Drugs With Infective Endocarditis in Seattle, Washington.

Background: Infective endocarditis (IE) remains highly morbid, but few studies have evaluated factors associated with IE mortality. We examined correlates of 90-day mortality among people who inject drugs (PWID) and people who do not inject drugs (non-PWID).

Methods: We queried the electronic medical record for cases of IE among adults ≥18 years of age at 2 academic medical centers in Seattle, Washington, from 1 January 2014 to 31 July 2019.

Diagnostic accuracy of ICD code versus discharge summary-based query for endocarditis cohort identification.

Studies of infective endocarditis (IE) have relied on International Classification of Disease (ICD) codes to identify cases, a method vulnerable to misclassification. Clinical narrative data could offer greater accuracy and richness to cohort identification. We evaluated two algorithms: 1.

HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and sexually transmitted infections: intersection and opportunity.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has revolutionized HIV prevention, but PrEP does not protect against other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Rates of STIs are rising worldwide, with notably high incidences among PrEP-using men who have sex with men in high-income countries; in low-income and middle-income countries, data are sparse, but results from a limited number of studies among African women initiating and taking PrEP have shown high STI prevalence and incidence. Efforts aimed at markedly reducing HIV in populations worldwide include a major focus on increasing PrEP use, along with improving HIV testing and treatment in order to eliminate HIV transmission.

Use of a Community Center Primary Care Clinic and Subsequent Emergency Department Visits Among Unhoused Women.

This cohort study evaluates the association between use of a community center primary care clinic and subsequent nonemergent emergency department (ED) visits by unhoused women who exchange sex and inject drugs.

Hydroxychloroquine with or without azithromycin for treatment of early SARS-CoV-2 infection among high-risk outpatient adults: A randomized clinical trial.

Background: Treatment options for outpatients with COVID-19 could reduce morbidity and prevent SARS-CoV-2 transmission.

Methods: In this randomized, double-blind, three-arm (1:1:1) placebo-equivalent controlled trial conducted remotely throughout the United States, adult outpatients with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were recruited. Participants were randomly assigned to receive hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) (400 mg BID x1day, followed by 200 mg BID x9days) with or without azithromycin (AZ) (500 mg, then 250 mg daily x4days) or placebo-equivalent (ascorbic acid (HCQ) and folic acid (AZ)), stratified by risk for progression to severe COVID-19 (high-risk vs.