HIV Prevention for African American Teens
Condition: Sexually Transmitted Diseases
MeSH terms: Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Study type: Interventional
Phase: Phase 3

Summary: 
      AFIYA aims to reduce both the risk of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) and HIV in young
      African American females through a culturally and gender appropriate intervention (group
      sessions) coupled with an individualized HIV Telephone Maintenance Intervention.
    

Detailed description: 
      African-American adolescent females are a population at high risk for HIV infection. Recent
      findings suggest that culturally and gender appropriate HIV educational programs can
      significantly reduce sexual risk behaviors among this vulnerable population over the short
      term. It is unclear as to whether these programs have long-term effects. Thus, the aim of
      this project is to develop and test a culturally and gender-appropriate sexual health
      education program designed to promote long-term maintenance of HIV preventive sexual
      behaviors over a long follow-up period.

      700 African-American female adolescents' between the ages of 14-20 will be enrolled in this
      trial. Adolescents will be recruited from youth currently seeking services at several family
      planning clinics in Atlanta, Georgia. Adolescents who are eligible and willing to participate
      in the project will complete an initial ACASI survey. The survey is designed to assess
      adolescents' sexual risk and preventive behaviors. Biological specimens are collected and
      tested for common STI's. Free DOT (Directly Observed Therapy) is provided through the
      clinics. Urine pregnancy screens will also be conducted. After they complete the assessment,
      adolescents will receive a sexual health education program that was developed by the
      Principal Investigator. This program (HORIZONS) has been shown to be effective in reducing
      sexual risk behaviors over the short-term. Trained African American female health educators
      will deliver the sexual health education program. Adolescents will then be assigned, by
      chance alone, to one of two groups: one group will get periodic telephone contacts designed
      to reinforce sexual health promotion and the other group will get periodic telephone contacts
      that promote healthy dietary practices. Thus, while all adolescents receive the same sexual
      health education program, half will get telephone calls emphasizing sexual health and half
      will get an equal number of telephone calls emphasizing nutritional health.

      The primary aims of the proposed project are:

      Primary Aim 1. To determine whether adding a telephone educational component to a sexual
      health education program will reduce incident STD infection over a 36-month follow-up.

      Primary Aim 2. To determine if adding a telephone educational component to a sexual health
      education program can maintain HIV-preventive behaviors.

      We will ask adolescents to come back to participating clinics to complete follow-up
      assessments at 6 months, 12-months,18-months, 24-months, 30-months and 36-months after
      completing the initial assessment. We will test the effects of adding the telephone sexual
      health educational program to maintain or enhance adolescents' use of HIV prevention
      behaviors and reduce incident STDs. If successful, the findings could have important
      implications for HIV prevention.
    

Intervention name(s): Afiya HIV Prevention Intervention; Afiya HIV prevention intervention
Intervention type(s): Behavioral; Behavioral
Intervention description(s): Group-based session plus individually tailored HIV prevention phone sessions; Afiya group-based intervention + nutrition phone sessions (attention control)
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Prevention
Keywords: Sexually Transmitted Diseases, HIV, condom use, adolescents