Prepared for PrEP: preferences for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis among Chinese men who have sex with men in an online national survey

BMC Infect Dis. 2019 Dec 16;19(1):1057. doi: 10.1186/s12879-019-4692-x.

Abstract

Background: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is not widely available in China. Previous studies reported low awareness and inconclusive findings on the acceptability of PrEP among Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM).

Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of an online national survey comparing preferences for oral and long-acting injectable PrEP among MSM and identifying correlates of preferences. The study did not collect detailed information about partner types that may influence negotiated safety and PrEP uptake.

Results: Nine-hundred and seventy-nine men from the larger sample of 1045 men responded to the PrEP survey questions. Most men (81.9%) had never heard of PrEP, but reported interest in using PrEP. More participants chose injectable PrEP (36.3%) as their preferred formulation than oral PrEP (24.6%). Men who had at least two HIV tests (adjusted OR = 1.36, 95%CI 1.04, 1.78) more commonly preferred injectable PrEP.

Conclusion: Our findings may help inform PrEP messaging in areas where PrEP has yet to be scaled up.

Keywords: China; HIV; Men who have sex with men; Pre-exposure prophylaxis; Preference.

MeSH terms

  • Administration, Oral
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Awareness
  • China
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Ethnicity
  • HIV Infections / prevention & control*
  • Homosexuality, Male / psychology*
  • Humans
  • Injections
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Patient Acceptance of Health Care / psychology
  • Patient Preference / psychology*
  • Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis / methods*
  • Public Health
  • Sexual Partners
  • Sexual and Gender Minorities / psychology*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Young Adult