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The Feasibility, Acceptability and Preliminary Impact of Mobile Application to Increase Repeat HIV Testing Among Sexual Minority Men

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Abstract

We pilot tested the Status Update Project (SUP) mobile app intervention to promote repeat HIV testing among HIV-negative US MSM. Participants (Mean age = 29 years; 51% racial/ethnic minority; 63% single) who were eligible and enrolled were randomized to either the SUP mobile app or a no-treatment condition, with assessments at baseline and month 4 and 8. Eighty-three percent of men were retained at the 8-month follow up. Among men randomized to the SUP arm, the app’s ease and simplicity, health information, HIV testing locator, and HIV test reminders were most liked. At month 4, men randomized to the SUP arm were more likely to be repeat testers compared to those in the control arm (RR = 4.4; 95% CI 0.9, 19.9), although differences diminished by month 8 (RR = 1.2; 95% CI 0.8, 2.0). These findings add to our understanding of how mHealth interventions may play an important role in encouraging repeat HIV testing among MSM.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank participants for the time they offered during the conduct of this study. Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health under award number R34-MH-105202. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, 6363 Alvarado Court, San Diego, CA, 92120, USA

    Keith J. Horvath

  2. Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Keith J. Horvath, Sara Lammert & Thu Danh

  3. Office of Public Health Studies, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA

    Jason W. Mitchell

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  1. Keith J. Horvath
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  2. Sara Lammert
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Correspondence to Keith J. Horvath.

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Horvath, K.J., Lammert, S., Danh, T. et al. The Feasibility, Acceptability and Preliminary Impact of Mobile Application to Increase Repeat HIV Testing Among Sexual Minority Men. AIDS Behav 24, 1835–1850 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-019-02755-7

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