Translation of Basic Research in Cognitive Science to HIV Risk

HIV/AIDS Clinical Trial

Official title:

Action Plans & Memory Consolidation: Reducing HIV Risk in Drug Users

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT03175250
• Other study ID #: 1R01DA033871
• Secondary ID: 1R01DA033871
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• First received: June 1, 2017
• Last updated: June 2, 2017
• Start date: October 15, 2013
• Est. completion date: March 31, 2016

Study information

• Verified date: June 2017
• Source: Claremont Graduate University
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

A randomized trial was conducted at drug diversion educational programs with a sample of 343 adult drug offenders who volunteered for the study. The trial tested three different interventions on HIV testing and condom use, with a 3 month follow-up. The study translated consistent basic research showing strong effects of memory practice on memory for new material. One of the conditions involved extensive memory practice of action plans involving HIV testing and condom use. Other conditions varied two active control interventions. Results showed that the memory practice condition led to a substantially larger odds of HIV testing than did the two control conditions. Condom use was also significantly more frequent in the memory practice condition than in one of the control conditions but was not significantly different from the second control condition.

Description:

This study translated basic research from several areas of cognitive science to a new intervention procedure designed to reduce HIV risk and increase screening for HIV and other infections. A randomized trial was conducted (N = 343) to test effects on testing for infection (HIV and hepatitis B/C) and condom use frequency in a sample of drug offenders at risk for infection. Many populations of drug offenders are not currently receiving evidence-based prevention for HIV or hepatitis and are in need of effective interventions that can be used in existing drug programs. At three-month follow-up, the results revealed that the condition translating basic research on memory practice and integrative processing significantly increased the odds of infection testing as compared to two alternative conditions. This condition also significantly improved the extent of condom use, compared to a traditional health education condition. The results show promise for increased translation of basic research on memory to behavioral interventions on health and prevention science. Such procedures can be effectively applied in a complex field setting in existing drug diversion programs.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 343
• Est. completion date: March 31, 2016
• Est. primary completion date: March 31, 2016
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Enrolled in drug diversion education program

• Minimum age 18

• Understand English

Exclusion Criteria:

• Under 18

• Do not understand English

• Obviously intoxicated

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• HIV/AIDS

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Health Education
Videos (AIDSvideos.org) were presented on individually-assigned laptops and covered HIV risk, condom use, safe sex, and infection testing
• Action Plan
Participants selected situations for condom use and screening for HIV and hepatitis on individually-assigned laptops. They linked these situations to preventive behaviors regarding screening and condom use.
• Memory Practice
Participants engaged in several different types of memory practice procedures on assigned laptops. The procedures focused on memory for action plans for screening and condom use.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
n/a

Sponsors (2)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Claremont Graduate University	National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

References & Publications (3)

Catania JA, Coates TJ, Stall R, Turner H, Peterson J, Hearst N, Dolcini MM, Hudes E, Gagnon J, Wiley J, et al. Prevalence of AIDS-related risk factors and condom use in the United States. Science. 1992 Nov 13;258(5085):1101-6. — View Citation

Darke S, Hall W, Heather N, Ward J, Wodak A. The reliability and validity of a scale to measure HIV risk-taking behaviour among intravenous drug users. AIDS. 1991 Feb;5(2):181-5. — View Citation

Donenberg GR, Emerson E, Bryant FB, Wilson H, Weber-Shifrin E. Understanding AIDS-risk behavior among adolescents in psychiatric care: links to psychopathology and peer relationships. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2001 Jun;40(6):642-53. — View Citation

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	HIV and other infection testing	HIV testing was measured with items from the National Sexual Health Survey (Catania et al., 1992). Hepatitis testing items were assessed in an identical structure. Testing for other sexually transmitted diseases was measured with items from the AIDS Risk Behavior Assessment (Donenberg et al., 2001). These items were tabulated to form a binary variable of whether participants reported testing for HIV, hepatitis, or other sexually transmitted diseases within the past 3 months (3 months following intervention).	Past 3 months
Primary	Condom use	Condom use was assessed with three condom use frequency items from the HIV Risk-taking Behavior Scale (Darke et al., 1991; a =.70; test-retest, r = .86). Response agreement between participants and their sex partners ranged from 88% to 100% in previous research. The questions asked how often participants used condoms in the past 3 months (following the intervention) when having vaginal, oral, or anal sex on a 5-point scale: never, some of the time, about half of the time, most of the time, always.	Past 3 months

External Links

•   website with HIV related videos used in intervention