The rate of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) remains high among Peruvian men who have sex with men (MSM), and new prevention programs should be developed to reach and provide sexual health services to more MSM. The Internet is a feasible medium both for recruiting participants and for implementing projects with MSM in Lima, Peru. Likewise, in Peru, mobile phones are promising tools for carrying out HIV-related interventions due to the high rate of mobile phone penetration. The Internet is a way to reach MSM who do not attend traditional health centers due to the stigma associated with being homosexual. Since mobile phones can be used to promote health, the investigators proposed to design, implement, and evaluate an intervention using text messages to promote HIV testing among Peruvian MSM recruited online. To achieve this objective, the investigators conducted a randomized controlled trial to assess the efficacy of a text message-based intervention to promote HIV testing among MSM in Lima recruited via the Internet.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
DIAGNOSTIC
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
400
Participants received weekly text messages to promote health and HIV testing and were followed and supported by trained healthcare counselors through two-way communication over a 12-week period. They were able to schedule a free HIV testing appointment at any time up to six months after enrollment.
Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia
Lima, Lima Province, Peru
Number of participants who received an HIV test
Having undergone HIV testing at one of the study-affiliated health centers
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of the 6-month follow-up period
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