Browsing by Author "Fortenberry, J. Dennis"
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Item A human-centered designed outreach strategy for a youth contraception navigator program(Elsevier, 2022) Wilkinson, Tracey A.; Hawryluk, Bridget; Moore, Courtney; Peipert, Jeffrey F.; Carroll, Aaron E.; Wiehe, Sarah; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Pediatrics, School of MedicineObjective: To identify key elements of an outreach strategy for a youth contraception navigator program designed to help young people overcome barriers to contraception access. Methods: A human-centered design approach was used to engage adolescents aged 15-17 in co-design sessions. Human-centered design techniques, such as affinity diagramming and model building were used to inform key elements of the communication model and the final outreach strategy messages. Results: Messages focused on the individual, normalizing talking about birth control, acknowledging the challenges to obtaining birth control, explaining how the navigator program works resonate with young people. Having images of diverse participants, offering information about birth control, and showing images of reputable sources will enhance trust. Conclusions: A name (IN Control) and key elements of an outreach strategy were determined for the navigator program. It is important to work with key stakeholders and co-design the optimal strategy and messages to assure that the intended audience is reached, and the desired behavior change is achieved. Innovation: Human-centered design techniques can be used to provide insight into programmatic outreach strategies for a contraception navigator program to increase their impact and ultimate success.Item Adolescent and Adult HIV Providers' Definitions of HIV-Infected Youths' Successful Transition to Adult Care in the United States(Mary Ann Liebert, 2017-10) Philbin, Morgan M.; Tanner, Amanda E.; Ma, Alice; Chambers, Brittany D.; Ware, Samuella; Kinnard, Elizabeth N.; Hussen, Sophia A.; Lee, Sonia; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Pediatrics, School of MedicineIt is important for both individual- and population-level health that HIV-infected individuals progress through the Care Continuum. However, HIV-infected youth frequently disengage from care during transition from pediatric/adolescent to adult care; only 50% remain in adult care after 1 year. Understanding how providers define and approach a successful healthcare transition can improve the delivery of HIV-related services during critical years of HIV treatment. We conducted 58 staff interviews across 14 Adolescent Trials Network clinics (n = 30) and 20 adult clinics (n = 28). We used the constant comparative method to examine how providers defined and approached youths' successful transition. Providers identified four components critical to successful transition: (1) clinical outcomes (e.g., medication adherence and viral suppression); (2) youth knowing how to complete treatment-related activities (e.g., refilling prescriptions and making appointments); (3) youth taking responsibility for treatment-related activities and their overall health (e.g., "when they stop reaching out to the adolescent [clinic] to solve all their problems."); and (4) youth feeling a connection and trust toward the adult clinic (e.g., "they feel safe here"), with some providers even prioritizing connectedness over clinical outcomes (e.g., "Even if they're not taking meds but are connected [to care], …that's a success."). The identification of key components of successful transition can guide focused interventions and resources to improve youth maintenance in the HIV Care Continuum as they transition to adult care. Identifying what facilitates successful transitions, and the gaps that interventions can target, will help to ensure HIV-infected youth remain healthy across their lifespan.Item Adolescent Health-Risk Behavior and Community Disorder(2013-11) Wiehe, Sarah E.; Kwan, Mei-Po; Wilson, Jeffrey S.; Fortenberry, J. DennisBackground Various forms of community disorder are associated with health outcomes but little is known about how dynamic context where an adolescent spends time relates to her health-related behaviors. Objective Assess whether exposure to contexts associated with crime (as a marker of community disorder) correlates with self-reported health-related behaviors among adolescent girls. Methods Girls (N = 52), aged 14–17, were recruited from a single geographic urban area and monitored for 1 week using a GPS-enabled cell phone. Adolescents completed an audio computer-assisted self-administered interview survey on substance use (cigarette, alcohol, or marijuana use) and sexual intercourse in the last 30 days. In addition to recorded home and school address, phones transmitted location data every 5 minutes (path points). Using ArcGIS, we defined community disorder as aggregated point-level Unified Crime Report data within a 200-meter Euclidian buffer from home, school and each path point. Using Stata, we analyzed how exposures to areas of higher crime prevalence differed among girls who reported each behavior or not. Results Participants lived and spent time in areas with variable crime prevalence within 200 meters of their home, school and path points. Significant differences in exposure occurred based on home location among girls who reported any substance use or not (p 0.04) and sexual intercourse or not (p 0.01). Differences in exposure by school and path points were only significant among girls reporting any substance use or not (p 0.03 and 0.02, respectively). Exposure also varied by school/non-school day as well as time of day. Conclusions Adolescent travel patterns are not random. Furthermore, the crime context where an adolescent spends time relates to her health-related behavior. These data may guide policy relating to crime control and inform time- and space-specific interventions to improve adolescent health.Item Adolescent Self-Consent for Biomedical HIV Prevention Research: Implications for Institutional Review Board Approval and Implementation(Elsevier, 2015-07) Gilbert, Amy Lewis; Knopf, Amelia S.; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Hosek, Sybil G.; Kapogiannis, Bill G.; Zimet, Gregory D.; IU School of NursingPurpose The Adolescent Medicine Trials Network Protocol 113 (ATN113) is an open-label, multisite demonstration project and Phase II safety study of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) preexposure prophylaxis with 15- to 17-year-old young men who have sex with men that requires adolescent consent for participation. The purpose of this study was to examine factors related to the process by which Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) and researchers made decisions regarding whether to approve and implement ATN113 so as to inform future biomedical HIV prevention research with high-risk adolescent populations. Methods Participants included 17 researchers at 13 sites in 12 states considering ATN113 implementation. Qualitative descriptive methods were used. Data sources included interviews and documents generated during the initiation process. Results A common process for initiating ATN113 emerged, and informants described how they identified and addressed practical, ethical, and legal challenges that arose. Informants described the process as responding to the protocol, preparing for IRB submission, abstaining from or proceeding with submission, responding to IRB concerns, and reacting to the outcomes. A complex array of factors impacting approval and implementation were identified, and ATN113 was ultimately implemented in seven of 13 sites. Informants also reflected on lessons learned that may help inform future biomedical HIV prevention research with high-risk adolescent populations. Conclusions The results illustrate factors for consideration in determining whether to implement such trials, demonstrate that such protocols have the potential to be approved, and highlight a need for clearer standards regarding biomedical HIV prevention research with high-risk adolescent populations.Item Area-level incarceration and STI risk among a cohort of justice-involved adolescents and adults(2014-11) Wiehe, Sarah E.; Rosenman, Marc; Scanlon, Michael L.; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Aalsma, Matthew C.Background: Living in areas of high incarceration is associated with increased risk of STI; however, STI risk with respect to both this area-level exposure and an individual’s involvement with the justice system is not known. Objective: Among individuals before and after arrest or incarceration, assess the association between area-level incarceration rates and risk of chlamydia, gonorrhea, or syphilis. Methods: Retrospective cohort study of individuals living in Marion County (Indianapolis), Indiana who were arrested or in jail, prison, juvenile detention, or juvenile prison between 2005-2008 (N=97,765). Area-level incarceration exposure was defined by the proportion of person-days incarcerated among the total population*365 within a census block group. A 1-year period was assessed before and after a randomly-selected arrest/incarceration per person. Multivariable logistic regression, controlling for age, race, STI history, and year, was performed to assess chlamydia, gonorrhea, or syphilis risk by quartile area-level incarceration exposure, adjusting for individual clustering and stratifying by gender. Results: Area-level incarceration was associated with increased odds of each STI, with a dose response relationship particularly among those with an arrest or jail stay. Women with a history of arrest or jail/prison stay and living in high incarceration areas had higher odds of STI, compared to men with comparable incarceration history and living in similar areas.Item The Association between Incarceration and Transactional Sex among HIV-infected Young Men Who Have Sex with Men in the United States(Springer Nature, 2018-08) Philbin, Morgan M.; Kinnard, Elizabeth N.; Tanner, Amanda E.; Ware, Samuella; Chambers, Brittany D.; Ma, Alice; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Pediatrics, School of MedicineCriminal justice practices in the USA disproportionately affect sexual and racial/ethnic minority men, who are at higher risk of incarceration. Previous research demonstrates associations between incarceration and sexual risk behaviors for men who have sex with men (MSM). However, little of this work focuses on young MSM (YMSM), particularly HIV-infected YMSM, despite nearly one-third reporting engagement in sexual risk behaviors, such as transactional sex. We therefore explored the association between incarceration and transactional sex among HIV-infected YMSM. We recruited 97 HIV-infected YMSM across 14 clinical sites in urban centers from August 2015 to February 2016. We used multivariate logistic regression to examine the relationship between incarceration and transactional sex among YMSM. The majority was 24 years old (78%) and racial/ethnic minority (95%); over half were not in school and reported an annual income of < $12,000. In the multivariate model, having ever been incarcerated (aOR = 3.20; 95% CI 1.07–9.63) was independently associated with a history of transactional sex. Being 24 years vs. younger (aOR = 9.68; 95% CI 1.42–65.78) and having ever been homeless (aOR = 3.71, 95% CI 1.18–11.65) also remained independently associated with a history of transactional sex. This analysis fills a gap in the literature by examining the relationship between incarceration and transactional sex among HIV-infected YMSM. Facilitating youths’ engagement with social services available in their HIV clinic may serve as a key strategy in promoting health. Public health efforts need to address social-structural factors driving disproportionate rates of arrest and incarceration and related harms among this population.Item The Association between Sexual Health and Physical, Mental and Social Health in Adolescent Women(Elsevier, 2016-10) Hensel, Devon J.; Nance, Jennifer; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Department of Pediatrics, IU School of MedicinePurpose Developmental models link sexual well-being to physical, mental/emotional, and social well-being, yet little empirical literature evaluates these relationships in adolescents. Better understanding of how and when sexuality complements other aspects of health may yield important points to enhance existing health education and prevention efforts. Methods Data were drawn from a 10-year longitudinal cohort study of sexual relationships and sexual behavior among adolescent women (N = 387; 14–17 years at enrollment). Sexual health data were drawn from quarterly partner-specific interviews and were linked to physical, mental/emotional, and social health information in annual questionnaires. Random intercept, mixed effects linear, ordinal logistic, or binary logistic regression were used to estimate the influence of sexual health on health and well-being outcomes (Stata, v.23, StataCorp, College Station, TX). All models controlled for participant age and race/ethnicity. Results Higher sexual health was significantly associated with less frequent nicotine and substance use, lower self-reported depression, lower thrill seeking, higher self-esteem, having fewer friends who use substances, higher religiosity, better social integration, lower frequency of delinquent behavior and crime, and more frequent community group membership. Sexual health was not associated with the number of friends who used cigarettes. Conclusions Positive sexually related experiences in romantic relationships during adolescence may complement physical, mental/emotional, and social health. Addressing specific aspects of healthy sexual development during clinical encounters could dually help primary prevention and health education address other common adolescent health issues.Item Association of Chlamydia trachomatis infection with redetection of human papillomavirus after apparent clearance(Oxford, 2013-11) Shew, Marcia L.; Ermel, Aaron C.; Weaver, Bree A.; Tong, Yan; Tu, Wanzhu; Kester, Laura M.; Denski, Cheryl; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Brown, Darron R.; Pediatrics, School of MedicineBACKGROUND: Persistent infection with oncogenic human papillomavirus (HPV) is associated with an increased risk of cervical malignancy. Redetection of type-specific HPV after a period of nondetection may be caused by reactivation of a low-level persistent infection. Little is known about factors associated with type-specific HPV redetection. METHODS: For a longitudinal cohort of adolescent women with frequent behavioral and sexually transmitted infection (STI) information (every 3 months), Cox proportional hazard models were used to assess the influence of sexual behaviors and STIs on the redetection of oncogenic or high-risk HPV infections. RESULTS: A total of 210 type-specific high-risk HPV detection episode periods were identified in this longitudinal cohort; 71 (33.8%) were characterized by a period of nondetection followed by redetection. Chlamydia trachomatis (hazard ratio [HR], 3.14; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.44-6.86) was associated with redetection; redetection was >2 times more likely with each additional self-reported sex partner in the past 3 months (HR, 2.26; 95% CI, 1.35-3.78). CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the role of C. trachomatis and number of recent sexual partners in type-specific HPV redetection. Given that persistent oncogenic HPV infections are associated with cancer-related outcomes, understanding the potential role of such factors in the pathogenesis of HPV-related outcomes is important.Item Association of Frequent Sexual Choking/Strangulation With Neurophysiological Responses: A Pilot Resting-State fMRI Study(Mary Ann Liebert, 2023) Hou, Jiancheng; Huibregtse, Megan E.; Alexander, Isabella L.; Klemsz, Lillian M.; Fu, Tsung-Chieh; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Herbenick, Debby; Kawata, Keisuke; Pediatrics, School of MedicineBeing choked or strangled during partnered sex is an emerging sexual behavior, prevalent among young adult women. The goal of this study was to test whether, and to what extent, frequently being choked or strangled during sex is associated with cortical surface functioning and functional connectivity. This case-control study consisted of two groups (choking vs. choking-naïve). Women who were choked 4 or more times during sex in the past 30 days were enrolled into the choking group, whereas those without were assigned to the choking-naïve group. We collected structural and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data and analyzed the data for amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and regional homogeneity (ReHo) using cortical surface-based resting-state fMRI analysis, followed by static and dynamic resting-state fMRI connectivity analysis. Forty-one participants (choking n = 20; choking-n-aïve n = 21) contributed to the analysis. An inter-hemispheric imbalance in neuronal activation pattern was observed in the choking group. Specifically, we observed significantly lower ALFF and ReHo in the left cortical regions (e.g., angular gyrus, orbitofrontal gyrus) and higher ALFF and ReHo in the right cortical regions (e.g., pre-central/post-central gyri) in the choking group compared with the choking-naïve group. A significant group difference was found in static functional connectivity between the bilateral angular gyrus and the whole brain, in which the choking group's angular gyrus showed hyperconnectivity with, for example, the post-central gyrus, pre-central gyrus, and Rolandic operculum, relative to the choking-naïve group. The dynamic analysis revealed hyperconnectivity between the left angular gyrus and the bilateral postcentral gyrus in the choking group compared with the choking-naïve group. Taken together, our data show that multiple experiences of sexual choking/strangulation are associated with an inter-hemispheric imbalance in neural activation pattern and hyperconnectivity between the angular gyrus and brain regions related to motor control, consciousness, and emotion. A longitudinal study using multi-modal neurological assessments is needed to clarify the acute and chronic consequences of sexual choking/strangulation.Item Associations Between Dysmenorrhea Symptom-Based Phenotypes and Vaginal Microbiome: A Pilot Study(Wolters Kluwer, 2021) Chen, Chen X.; Carpenter, Janet S.; Gao, Xiang; Toh, Evelyn; Dong, Qunfeng; Nelson, David E.; Mitchell, Caroline; Fortenberry, J. DennisBACKGROUND: Dysmenorrhea is highly prevalent; it places women at risk for other chronic pain conditions. There is a high degree of individual variability in menstrual pain severity, the number of painful sites, and co-occurring gastrointestinal symptoms. Distinct dysmenorrhea symptom-based phenotypes were previously identified, but the biological underpinnings of these phenotypes are less known. One underexplored contributor is the vaginal microbiome. The vaginal microbiota differs significantly among reproductive-age women and may modulate as well as amplify reproductive tract inflammation, which may contribute to dysmenorrhea symptoms. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to examine associations between dysmenorrhea symptom-based phenotypes and vaginal microbiome compositions on- and off-menses. METHODS: We conducted a prospective, longitudinal, pilot study of 20 women (aged 15-24 years) grouped into three dysmenorrhea symptom-based phenotypes: "mild localized pain," "severe localized pain," and "severe multiple pain and gastrointestinal symptoms." Over one menstrual cycle, participants provided vaginal swabs when they were on- and off-menses. We assayed the vaginal microbiome using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Permutational multivariate analysis of variance tests were used to compare microbiome compositions across phenotypes, with heat maps generated to visualize the relative abundance of bacterial taxa. RESULTS: The vaginal microbiome compositions (n = 40) were different across the three phenotypes. After separating the on-menses (n = 20) and off-menses (n = 20) specimens, the statistically significant difference was seen on-menses, but not off-menses. Compared to the "mild localized pain" phenotype, participants in the "multiple severe symptoms" phenotype had a lower lactobacilli level and a higher abundance of Prevotella, Atopobium, and Gardnerella when on-menses. We also observed trends of differences across phenotypes in vaginal microbiome change from off- to on-menses. DISCUSSION: The study provides proof-of-concept data to support larger studies on associations between dysmenorrhea symptom-based phenotypes and vaginal microbiome that might lead to new intervention targets and/or biomarkers for dysmenorrhea. This line of research has the potential to inform precision dysmenorrhea treatment that can improve women's quality of life.