Acceptability of PrEP for HIV prevention among women at high risk for HIV.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the acceptability of a daily pill for prevention of HIV acquisition among 400 Ghanaian women in the oral tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) clinical trial.


METHODS
Structured questionnaires were conducted with women enrolled in the trial at enrollment and at each of the 12 monthly follow-up visits. Growth curve analysis was used to examine adherence patterns over time. Qualitative interviews were carried out with a subsample of the clinical trial population, and thematic analysis was applied to these data.


RESULTS
Overall, acceptability of the pill was good. Adherence remained > 82% throughout the 12-month trial. Consistent access to the pill and study assignment were both associated with adherence. Most reported problems diminished over time as women became accustomed to the pill and developed strategies to incorporate pill taking into their daily routines.


CONCLUSIONS
If daily preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV is found to be efficacious and has as few physical side effects as TDF, acceptability of this method among women in the study population may not be problematic. However, future studies must develop better acceptability measures, in order to more fully address the relationship among adherence, safety, and effectiveness.
Guest
Greg
G
Family Health International, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27709, USA. gguest@fhi.org
Shattuck
Dominick
D
Johnson
Laura
L
Akumatey
Betty
B
Clarke
Edith Essie Kekawo
EE
Chen
Pai-Lien
PL
Macqueen
Kathleen M
KM
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000328:Adult; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005869:Ghana; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018570:Risk Assessment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents