Active clinical trials for "Sexually Transmitted Diseases"

The purpose of this program evaluation is to determine whether the Health Love Workshop, a group-level HIV behavioral intervention, reduces HIV-related sex risk behaviors and increases HIV protective behaviors of African American women and women of African descent. The intent of this program is to support an evaluation of the efficacy of the intervention and to provide feedback to the implementing organization to increase intervention effectiveness.

The efficacy of counseling to prevent infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) has not been definitively shown. This multi-center randomized controlled trial (Project RESPECT) sought to compare the effects of 2 interactive HIV/STD counseling interventions with didactic prevention messages typical of current practice. A total of 5758 STD clinic patients were enrolled from 5 public STD clinics (Baltimore, Md; Denver, Colo; Long Beach, Calif; Newark, NJ; and San Francisco, Calif) between July 1993 and September 1996. Eligible participants were heterosexual, HIV-negative patients aged 14 years or older who came for full STD examinations. Using a block design, participating men and women were randomzied separately to 1 of 3 individual face-to-face interventions. Arm 1 received "enhanced counseling" consisting of 4 interactive counseling sessions based on the Theory of Reasoned Action and Health Belief Model. Arm 2 received "brief counseling", consisting of 2 interactive risk-reduction sessions based on CDC's client-centered counseling model. Arms 3 and 4 each received 2 brief didactic messages about HIV/STD prevention messages typical of current care at that time. Participants assigned to Arms 1, 2, and 3 were actively followed up after enrollment with questionnaires at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months and STD laboratory examinations and tests at 6 and 12 months. An intent-to-treat analysis was used to compare interventions. Arm 4 participants were followed passively to determine potential effects of active study follow-up. The main outcome measures were self-reported condom use and new diagnoses of STDs (gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV) defined by laboratory tests. Results: At the 3- and 6-month follow-up visits, self-reported 100% condom use was higher (P<.05) in both the enhanced counseling and brief counseling arms compared with participants in the didactic messages arm. Through the 6-month interval, 30% fewer participants had new STDs in both the enhanced counseling (7.2%; P = .002) and brief counseling (7.3%;P=.005) arms compared with those in the didactic messages arm (10.4%). Through the 12-month study, 20% fewer participants in each counseling intervention had new STDs compared with those in the didactic messages arm (P = .008). Consistently at each of the 5 study sites, STD incidence was lower in the counseling intervention arms than in the didactic messages intervention arm. Reduction of STD was similar for men and women and greater for adolescents and persons with an STD diagnosed at enrollment. Subset analyses found that Based on these results, we conclude that short counseling interventions using personalized risk reduction plans can increase condom use and prevent new STDs. Effective counseling can be conducted even in busy public clinics.

The purpose of the project is to determine whether the VOICES/VOCES intervention, that was shown to be effective in a research study, is still effective when delivered by STD/HIV prevention agencies. VOICES/VOCES is a brief, single-session intervention for African-American and Latino adult men and women at high risk for STD/HIV. It encourages condom use and improves condom negotiation skills. A health educator delivers the intervention to groups of 4 to 8 clinic patients in a private room. Groups are made up of people of the same sex and same race or ethnicity. Information on STD/HIV risk behaviors and condom use is delivered by culturally-specific videos, group discussion, and a poster presenting features of various condom brands. Participants role-play condom negotiation modeled in the videos. At the end of the session they are given sample condoms of their choice. In this project, health educators from the health departments of New York City and San Juan, Puerto Rico conducted the VOICES/VOCES intervention with a sample of patients from one STD clinic in each of their cities. Researchers helped the health departments test whether the intervention is effective when local health educators deliver it.

The Project ÒRÉ intervention is a half-day community-based HIV/STI intervention program for friendship groups of adolescents that is tailored to African American culture. The four participating community sites will be assigned to either the Project ÒRÉ intervention or a standard health promotion program. Sexually experienced African American adolescent females will recruit members of their friendship group for the five-hour program. All participants will complete questionnaires before and immediately following the programs and another one 3 months later. Immediately following the program some of the Project ÒRÉ groups will also participate in a focus group to provide feedback about the program.

This study will develop and evaluate a school-based HIV, STD, and pregnancy prevention program for 7th and 8th grade middle school students.

After exposure to the C-POL intervention: 1) unprotected vaginal or anal sex, sex with casual partners, concurrent sexual relationships, and exchange of sex for drugs or money will decrease significantly; 2) perceived syphilis-risk for self and peer group, knowledge about highly relevant risk-factors, information sources and resources will increase significantly; and 3) syphilis morbidity will decrease significantly in the intervention community as compared to the comparison community.

Community members within the treatment city will report: 1)engaging in fewer sexual risk practices; 2)significantly higher condom use; 3) significantly higher rates of STD care seeking (including STD screening behaviors); 4) fewer having STDs in the past 6 months; 5) significantly higher awareness scores regarding syphilis and other STDs, as compared with those in the comparison city.

Over 80% of HIV-1 infected persons are also seropositive for HSV-2. Increasingly, clinical and epidemiologic evidence show the role of HSV in increasing HIV infectiousness. The evidence suggests that that HSV is an important cofactor in HIV transmission. The trial's purpose is to assess the reduction in HIV shedding associated with valacyclovir for suppression of HSV-2 reactivation. This proof-of-concept, randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled crossover trial of 20 HIV/HSV-2 co-infected men, assessed the effects of daily valacyclovir on HIV-1 levels in the plasma and rectal mucosa secretions.

This study will evaluate the efficacy of two curricula relative to standard care. The first is a sexual risk avoidance curriculum for middle school students that included abstinence until marriage and complies with Title V Section 510 A-H abstinence education requirements. The second is a sexual risk reduction curriculum for middle school students that included abstinence and condom/contraceptive information and skills. Each intervention consists of an age-appropriate classroom curriculum and a CD-ROM-based tailored intervention delivered in 7th and 8th grade. The overall goal of the study is to identify common elements of effective sexuality education curricula that will be of benefit to youth.

The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of a brief 23-minute video-based educational waiting room intervention to reduce incident STD and high risk behavior among STD patients attending STD clinics in three United States (U.S.) cities.