Posts
Researchers reported that a two-year
behavioral intervention aimed at reducing HIV incidence rates among young
people in Lesotho was successful in lowering HIV infections 39 percent among
young women. The study recruited 3,426 men and women ages 18–32 from 29 Lesotho
villages to be in one of three randomly selected groups: a control group that
received no intervention, a high-value lottery group ($100 ticket), and a
low-value lottery group ($50 ticket). All participants received baseline HIV
and sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing, STI treatment as needed, and
counseling every four months. All participants also took HIV tests at 16, 20,
and 24 months.
Those who tested negative for
syphilis and Trichomonas vaginalis received a lottery ticket, with drawings
held every four months in each village. Only ticket holders who remained
STI-free were eligible. Although the intervention had no effect on HIV incidence
among male participants, HIV incidence decreased by 33 percent among young
women in the high- and low-value arms of the study.
A Vancouver, Canada, study also used
financial incentives successfully to encourage drug users to have HIV tests and
return for test results. Intervention participants had far better results (100
percent tested, 83 percent returned for results) than a control group (32
percent tested, 11 percent returned for results).
An abstract of the report,
“Evaluating the Impact of Short Term Financial Incentives on HIV and STI
Incidence among Youth in Lesotho: A Randomized Trial,” was published online by
the Seventh IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment, and Prevention at
http://pag.ias2013.org/abstracts.aspx?aid=553
An abstract of the report, “Use of
Modest Financial Incentives to Improve Engagement of Drug Users in HIV Testing
and Follow-up: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial,” was published online
by the Seventh IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment, and Prevention at
http://pag.ias2013.org/abstracts.aspx?aid=2598
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus.
To learn more about The Friends of
AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
