From San Francisco to Rio: new approaches to HIV prevention for young men who have sex with men (Conectad@s Study)

Collaborative research between San Francisco and Rio de Janeiro on HIV prevalence, risk, and biomedical prevention interventions among young men who have sex with men

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Phase 4

Study type

Interventional

Source

REBEC

Registry ID

RBR-6m954m4

Enrollment

400

Registered

2026-03-13

Start date

2021-11-01

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2026-03-30

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

HIV Disease prevention

Interventions

This is a clinical study, open-label, non-randomized, single-arm, with digital intervention as the mains objective. The intervention will be offered to all participants at inclusion with no control gr

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

Male

Age

18 Years to 24 Years

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: Male sex assigned at birth and male or non-binary gender identity or female sex assigned at birth and male gender identity; sex with men; age between 18 and 24 years; resident of the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro; with the intention of remaining in the region during the study; possession of a referral coupon (physical or electronic) from an eligible partner

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: Not agreeing to receive text messages; not owning a cell phone

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Expected outcome 1: The primary outcome of the proposed pilot intervention is viral suppression (if HIV-positive) and initiation and adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxys (PrEP; if HIV-negative), with measurements throughout the continuum of HIV care or PrEP. We will measure exposure to the intervention, including the number of exposures to WhatsApp messages during the 6-month intervention period. Intervention exposure and outcome data will be analyzed using multivariable logistic generalized estimating equations (GEE) with interchangeable correlation structures to account for repeated measures over time for each participant. The GEE will determine the association between measures of exposure to the intervention (e.g., receipt of intervention, number of intervention messages) and primary outcomes related to the continuum of HIV care and PrEP.;Found outcome 1: The primary outcome of the proposed pilot intervention was viral suppression (if HIV-positive) and initiation of pre-exposure prophylaxys (PrEP; if HIV-negative). Comparing week 0 with week 48, there was an increase in HIV viral suppression (40.0% - 81.6%) and initiation of PrEP (0.9% to 68.7%).	—

Measure

Time frame

Expected outcome 1: The primary outcome of the proposed pilot intervention is viral suppression (if HIV-positive) and initiation and adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxys (PrEP; if HIV-negative), with measurements throughout the continuum of HIV care or PrEP. We will measure exposure to the intervention, including the number of exposures to WhatsApp messages during the 6-month intervention period. Intervention exposure and outcome data will be analyzed using multivariable logistic generalized estimating equations (GEE) with interchangeable correlation structures to account for repeated measures over time for each participant. The GEE will determine the association between measures of exposure to the intervention (e.g., receipt of intervention, number of intervention messages) and primary outcomes related to the continuum of HIV care and PrEP.;Found outcome 1: The primary outcome of the proposed pilot intervention was viral suppression (if HIV-positive) and initiation of pre-exposure prophylaxys (PrEP; if HIV-negative). Comparing week 0 with week 48, there was an increase in HIV viral suppression (40.0% - 81.6%) and initiation of PrEP (0.9% to 68.7%).

—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
No secundary outcomes are expected.	—

Countries

Contacts

Public ContactThiago Torres

Fiocruz

thiago.torres@ini.fiocruz.br+552138659623

Outcome results

None listed

Source: REBEC (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Apr 4, 2026