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      Transgender People and HIV Prevention: What We Know and What We Need to Know, a Call to Action.

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          Abstract

          Transgender people have been disproportionally affected by HIV, particularly transgender women. Their increased vulnerability to HIV is due to multiple issues, including biological (eg, increased efficiency of HIV transmission through receptive anal sex), epidemiological (eg, increased likelihood of having HIV-infected partners), structural (eg, social stigma limiting employment options), and individual factors (eg, internalized stigma leading to depression and substance use and risk-taking behaviors). There have been limited culturally appropriate HIV prevention interventions for transgender people, with many key prevention studies (eg, the iPrEx PrEP study) enrolling transgender women in a study focusing on men who have sex with men. This has resulted in limited understanding of the optimal ways to decrease transgender people's risk for HIV acquisition. The current supplement of JAIDS is designed to review what is known about HIV prevention for transgender people and to highlight new insights and best practices. The study reviews recent epidemiologic data, the pharmacology of HIV prophylactic agents in individuals who may be using exogenous hormones, and several recent multi-component interventions designed to address the lived experience of transgender people. Additionally, the study reviews the work going on at the NIH to address transgender health in general and HIV prevention in specific, as well as two important papers related to clinical trial design issues and the ethical conduct of research in this frequently disenfranchised population. It is the hope of the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) that this supplement will promote new knowledge around transgender health and the requisite issues that need to be addressed in order to conduct optimal clinical trials. The ultimate hope is that the information distilled in this supplement will inform investigators, clinicians, and public health officials in order to design further research to develop optimal prevention interventions for transgender people and to implement these interventions in ways that are culturally congruent and health promoting.

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          Most cited references30

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          Transgender stigma and health: A critical review of stigma determinants, mechanisms, and interventions.

          Transgender people in the United States experience widespread prejudice, discrimination, violence, and other forms of stigma.
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            HIV prevalence, risk behaviors, health care use, and mental health status of transgender persons: implications for public health intervention.

            This study described HIV prevalence, risk behaviors, health care use, and mental health status of male-to-female and female-to-male transgender persons and determined factors associated with HIV. We recruited transgender persons through targeted sampling, respondent-driven sampling, and agency referrals; 392 male-to-female and 123 female-to-male transgender persons were interviewed and tested for HIV. HIV prevalence among male-to-female transgender persons was 35%. African American race (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 5.81; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.82, 11.96), a history of injection drug use (OR = 2.69; 95% CI = 1.56, 4.62), multiple sex partners (adjusted OR = 2.64; 95% CI = 1.50, 4.62), and low education (adjusted OR = 2.08; 95% CI = 1.17, 3.68) were independently associated with HIV. Among female-to-male transgender persons, HIV prevalence (2%) and risk behaviors were much lower. Most male-to-female (78%) and female-to-male (83%) transgender persons had seen a medical provider in the past 6 months. Sixty-two percent of the male-to-female and 55% of the female-to-male transgender persons were depressed; 32% of each population had attempted suicide. High HIV prevalence suggests an urgent need for risk reduction interventions for male-to-female transgender persons. Recent contact with medical providers was observed, suggesting that medical providers could provide an important link to needed prevention, health, and social services.
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              Global Epidemiology of HIV Infection and Related Syndemics Affecting Transgender People

              Introduction: Transgender populations have been underrepresented in HIV epidemiologic studies and consequently in HIV prevention, care, and treatment programs. Since 2012, there has been a dramatic increase in research focused on transgender people. Studies highlight the burden of HIV and risk determinants, including intersecting stigmas, as drivers of syndemics among transgender populations. This review synthesizes the most recent global epidemiology of HIV infection and describes current gaps in research and interventions to inform prioritization of HIV research for transgender populations. Methods: A systematic review was conducted of the medical literature published between January 1, 2012 and November 30, 2015. The data focused on HIV prevalence, determinants of risk, and syndemics among transgender populations. Results: Estimates varied dramatically by location and subpopulation. Transfeminine individuals have some of the highest concentrated HIV epidemics in the world with laboratory-confirmed prevalence up to 40%. Data were sparse among trans masculine individuals; however, they suggest potential increased risk for trans masculine men who have sex with men (MSM). No prevalence data were available for transgender people across Sub-Saharan Africa or Eastern Europe/Central Asia. Emerging data consistently support the association of syndemic conditions with HIV risk in transgender populations. Discussion: Addressing syndemic conditions and gender-specific challenges is critical to ensure engagement and retention in HIV prevention by transgender populations. Future research should prioritize: filling knowledge gaps in HIV epidemiology; elucidating how stigma shapes syndemic factors to produce HIV and other deleterious effects on transgender health; and understanding how to effectively implement HIV interventions for transgender people.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                J. Acquir. Immune Defic. Syndr.
                Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999)
                Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)
                1944-7884
                1525-4135
                Aug 15 2016
                : 72 Suppl 3
                Affiliations
                [1 ] *Fenway Health/Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; †Fundação Oswaldo Cruz- FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and ‡ICAP at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York City, NY.
                Article
                00126334-201608151-00001
                10.1097/QAI.0000000000001086
                4969053
                27429184
                edd8bd4c-7258-4b37-b6a6-24472c442bba
                History

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