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AIDS Care
Psychological and Socio-medical Aspects of AIDS/HIV
Volume 32, 2020 - Issue 5
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Articles

Effectiveness of an HIV-risk reduction intervention to reduce HIV transmission among serodiscordant couples in Durban, South Africa. A randomized controlled trial

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Pages 537-545 | Received 06 Aug 2018, Accepted 29 May 2019, Published online: 03 Jul 2019
 

ABSTRACT

Lack of condom use by married or cohabiting couples in populations with high rates of HIV infection has become a significant public health issue. This study investigated whether an HIV risk-reduction intervention (RRI) would increase condom use when delivered to serodiscordant couples as a unit. Of the 62 couples that were screened, 30 serodiscordant couples were enrolled in the study, and randomized 2:1 to an immediate intervention-waitlist control study. The 12-week intervention focused on communication, problem-solving, and negotiation skills. Participants were assessed at baseline, three and six months after the intervention. The main outcome measures were consistent condom use, HIV seroconversion and fidelity to the programme. The use of condoms increased for both the intervention and control groups after receiving a 12-week RRI. Group comparisons showed a significant difference at three months, with a significantly higher mean proportion of condom-protected sex acts (p = 0.0119) between the control and intervention groups, the later showing an increase in condom use. No seroconversion was detected, and the overall retention rate of participants was 83.33%. Counselling heterosexual couples as a unit prompted an increase in condom use, but sustained condom use remains a challenge.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the College of Health Sciences UKZN.

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