|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
By Michelle Beaulieu Cooke
NEW YORK, Mar 13 (Reuters Health) - A program called "Act Safe" can reduce risky sexual behavior among teens infected with HIV by as much as 82%, according to researchers in California.
Changing the behavior of HIV-positive youths is important "for their (own) self-preservation and for the prevention of transmission to others," note researchers led by Dr. Mary Jane Rotheram-Borus of the University of California, Los Angeles. Continued risk-taking among HIV-infected youth has been well documented in recent years, and has been a source of considerable concern for public health officials.
Rotheram-Borus and colleagues followed the behaviors of 310 HIV-infected people aged 13 to 24 asked to participate in a two-part program--"Stay Healthy" and "Act Safe". The investigators then tracked rates of risky HIV-related health behaviors such as unsafe sex or illicit drug use over a 6-month follow-up period.
The first part of the intervention--"Stay Healthy"--which helps young people cope with testing HIV-positive, tended to promote healthy lifestyle changes among young women, but not young men, the investigators found. However, the researchers note that both boys and girls benefited from the program in terms of gaining needed social support.
More dramatic benefits were observed following the "Act Safe" portion of the intervention, the authors report in the March issue of the American Journal of Public Health, journal of the American Public Health Association.
The Act Safe program focuses on helping teens develop ways to resist risky behaviors. The 3-month program "resulted in an average 50% reduction in the number of HIV-negative (sex) partners, an 82% decrease in the number of unprotected sex acts and a 31% reduction in...drug use," the report indicates.
Rotheram-Borus told Reuters Health that she found these effects somewhat surprising in light of "stereotypes people have about youth." However, she also noted that many of the youths began to show positive changes even before the program, after learning of their HIV-positive status.
The study director and her colleagues are now in the midst of several follow-up studies. Some are examining alternative delivery methods of the program, such as individual sessions and telephone sessions, while others have been initiated to examine the effects of the program in adults with HIV. The data from these studies should be available in 6 to 18 months, she said.
SOURCE: American Journal of Public Health 2001;91:400-405.
| Health Topics | Drug Information | Dictionaries | Directories | Other Resources |
|
U.S. National Library of Medicine, 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894
Copyright and Privacy Policy, We welcome your comments. Last updated: 14 March 2001 |