Place-based predictors of HIV viral suppression and durable suppression among heterosexuals in New York city

ABSTRACT

Scant research has explored place-based correlates of achieving and maintaining HIV viral load suppression among heterosexuals living with HIV. We conducted multilevel analyses to examine associations between United Hospital Fund (UHF)-level characteristics and individual-level viral suppression and durable viral suppression among individuals with newly diagnosed HIV in New York City (NYC) who have heterosexual HIV transmission risk. Individual-level independent and dependent variables came from NYC’s HIV surveillance registry for individuals diagnosed with HIV in 2009–2013 (N = 3,159; 57% virally suppressed; 36% durably virally suppressed). UHF-level covariates included measures of food distress, demographic composition, neighborhood disadvantage and affluence, healthcare access, alcohol outlet density, residential vacancy, and police stop and frisk rates. We found that living in neighborhoods where a larger percent of residents were food distressed was associated with not maintaining viral suppression. If future research should confirm this is a causal association, community-level interventions targeting food distress may improve the health of people living with HIV and reduce the risk of forward transmission.

KEYWORDS:

• Food distress
• HIV viral suppression
• heterosexuals
• New York city
• place-based predictors

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by R01 DA035707 (Campbell, Des Jarlais) and by the Emory Center for AIDS Research (P30 AI050409; Curran.) The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.