Trial reportAIDS patient care and STDs2019
Positive Strategies to Enhance Problem-Solving Skills (STEPS): A Pilot Randomized, Controlled Trial of a Multicomponent, Technology-Enhanced, Customizable Antiretroviral Adherence Intervention for HIV-Infected Adolescents and Young Adults.
Trial report in AIDS patient care and STDs, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 45 citations in OpenAlex.
- Antiretroviral Therapy Adherence Interventions in the Era of Universal Test and Treat: A Hybrid Systematic-Narrative Literature Review of Global Evidence.AIDS and behavior · 2026Pooled it
- Psychosocial interventions for improving engagement in care and health and behavioural outcomes for adolescents and young people living with HIV: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2021Pooled it
- Self-management interventions for adolescents living with HIV: a systematic review.BMC infectious diseases · 2021Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Interventions to Improve Antiretroviral Therapy Adherence Among Adolescents and Youth in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review 2015-2019.AIDS and behavior · 2020Pooled it
- Moderated Effects of Latinx Ethnicity for a Stepped-Care, Technology and Counseling-Based Intervention (Positive STEPS) on Antiretroviral Adherence and Viral Load Suppression Among Youths With HIV, United States, 2018‒2023.American journal of public health · 2026Trial
- Positive STEPS: Enhancing Medication Adherence and Achieving Viral Load Suppression in Youth Living With HIV in the United States-Results From an Efficacious Stepped Care, Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) · 2025Trial
- Using structured problem solving to promote fluid consumption in the prevention of urinary stones with hydration (PUSH) trial.BMC nephrology · 2024Trial
- A Problem-Solving Intervention for Hospice Family Caregivers: A Randomized Clinical Trial.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2019Trial
- Life-steps for PrEP nurse-delivered adherence intervention: Protocol for a multisite randomized clinical trial.Contemporary clinical trials · 2026Article
- Interventions Supporting Disclosure Among Children and Adolescents Living with HIV: A Scoping Review and Realist Synthesis.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- "It's Our Superpower": A Mixed-Methods Study to Understand Motivation and Capabilities for HIV Management Among African American/Black and Latine Emerging Adults Living With HIV.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- Maladaptive Coping Strategies Mediate the Relationship Between Depression and Anxiety and Moderate-to-Heavy Alcohol Use in Young South Africans with HIV.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- The impact of mHealth interventions on medication adherence in breast cancer: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2026Review
- Implementation Strategies for Digital HIV Prevention and Care Interventions for Youth: A Scoping Review.Current HIV/AIDS reports · 2025Article
- A multi-informant qualitative analysis of desired features for an mHealth tool for youth living with HIV in South Carolina.Journal of pediatric psychology · 2024Article
- A qualitative exploration of how to support PrEP adherence among young men who have sex with men.AIDS care · 2024Article
- Interventions to Improve Adolescent HIV Care Outcomes.Current HIV/AIDS reports · 2023Review
- "Your status cannot hinder you": the importance of resilience among adolescents engaged in HIV care in Kenya.BMC public health · 2022Article
- Patient and provider perceptions of a peer-delivered intervention ('Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 6 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Adolescents are disproportionately impacted by HIV in the United States. Optimal effects from antiretroviral therapy (ART) can be achieved through stringent adherence to a daily medication regimen; for adolescents, this may be interrupted due to complex barriers unique to this age group. We previously conducted formative qualitative interviews with HIV-infected adolescents to identify key barriers facing adolescents regarding ART adherence and potential strategies to address these barriers. These data were used to inform an ART adherence intervention designed to overcome difficulties unique to HIV-infected adolescents (e.g., internalized stigma and HIV-related shame, disclosure to sexual partners, social life, and extracurricular activities at school, etc.). The resulting intervention-"Positive Strategies To Enhance Problem-solving Skills (Positive STEPS)"-combines five individual counseling sessions with daily text message reminders. We conducted a pilot randomized controlled trial of the intervention against a standard of care control and report on the feasibility of procedures and participant acceptability of the intervention in terms of content, structure, and format. ART adherence was measured in both arms through Medication Event Monitoring System pill caps and self-report. Feasibility and acceptability of the Positive STEPS intervention was evidenced by 90% retention for the intervention sessions; 100% completion of the four-month assessment; and positive responses on postintervention evaluation forms (all intervention participants rated Positive STEPS as "acceptable" or "very acceptable") and brief exit interviews. At the 4-month assessment visit, the change in ART adherence among the intervention group [mean change score = 13%, standard deviation (SD) = 29.5] was significantly higher compared with the standard of care group (mean change score = -26%, SD = 26.0; Cohen's d effect size = 1.43, confidence interval = 0.17-2.49, p = 0.02). Future testing of the intervention in a fully powered randomized controlled trial to determine efficacy is warranted.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.