Acceptance-Based Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Intervention (ACTPrEP) to Engage Young Black Men Who Have Sex With Men in the Southern United States: Protocol for a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND

Given the high rates of HIV infection among young Black men who have sex with men in Jackson, Mississippi, and the underuse of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in this population, there is a critical need for innovative interventions to promote PrEP use. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a promising intervention for health behavior change.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to develop and test an intervention, ACTPrEP, to increase PrEP use among young Black men who have sex with men.

METHODS

We conducted in-depth interviews with 20 young Black men who have sex with men and 10 PrEP staff to inform the development of ACTPrEP, an intervention that uses ACT to improve PrEP use. Specific ACTPrEP adaptations from the qualitative interviews included service settings (interventionists should be PrEP informed and well-integrated), target audiences (provide check-in calls, be caring, and authentically relate), modes of delivery (flexible delivery), and cultural adaptation (normalize PrEP use). A pilot randomized controlled trial will evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of ACTPrEP compared to that of Enhanced Standard of Care in promoting PrEP use among young Black men who have sex with men (N=66). We will specifically evaluate group differences in the proportion of participants who initiate PrEP, PrEP adherence, and PrEP persistence. Measures will be collected at baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.

RESULTS

Research activities began in September 2023 and will be ongoing through June 2026. Preliminary findings are anticipated to be available in late 2026.

CONCLUSIONS

This study will inform the development of a larger randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of ACTPrEP for increasing PrEP use among young Black men who have sex with men.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05087680; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05087680.

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/65921.