Trial reportPloS one2023
An instant messaging mobile phone application for promoting HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis uptake among Chinese gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men: A mixed methods feasibility and piloting randomized controlled trial study.
Trial report in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04426656 (IGHID 12001 - The Development of a Mobile-based App to Increase Uptake of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis), which is not on this map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
IGHID 12001 - The Development of a Mobile-based App to Increase Uptake of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) by Men Who Have Sex With Men in China
Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 9 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effectiveness of Digital Health Interventions in Promoting the Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Care Continuum among Men who Have Sex With Men (MSM): A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Current HIV/AIDS reports · 2025Pooled it
- Preferences for mHealth Features to Support Engagement in the HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis Cascade Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in Peru: Cross-Sectional Online Survey.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2026Article
- Identifying Implementation Gaps in the HIV Prevention Cascade among Peruvian Men Who Have Sex with Men.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- Formative Evaluation of an HIV Prevention App tailored for Latino Men Who Have Sex With Men: Acceptability and Usability Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- User Input in the Development of Digital Sexual Health Tools: A Scoping Review and Guidance for Tool Developers.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2025Article
- Crowdsourcing strategies to improve access to HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis in Australia, the Philippines, Thailand and China.BMC infectious diseases · 2025Article
- Article
- A Digital Health Intervention on Healthy Behaviors Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in China Based on Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills Model: An Exploratory Real-World Study.International journal of sexual health : official journal of the World Association for Sexual Health · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
17 authors at 5 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMobile health (mHealth) is a promising intervention mode for HIV prevention, but little is known about its feasibility and effects in promoting pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) uptake among Chinese gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM).
methodsWe evaluated an instant messaging application using a WeChat-based mini-app to promote PrEP uptake among GBMSM via a mixed-methods design that includes a 12-week, two-arm randomized controlled pilot trial and in-depth progress interviews in Guangzhou, China. Primary outcomes include the number of PrEP initiations, individual-level psychosocial variables related to PrEP initiation, and usability of the PrEP mini-app.
resultsBetween November 2020 and April 2021, 70 GBMSM were successfully enrolled and randomized into two arms at 2:1 ratio (46 to the intervention arm, 24 to the control arm). By the end of 12-week follow-up, 22 (31.4%) participants completed the initial consultation and lab tests for PrEP, and 13 (18.6%) filled their initial PrEP prescription. We observed modest but non-significant improvements in participants' intention to use PrEP, actual PrEP initiation, PrEP-related self-efficacy, stigma, and attitudes over 12 weeks when comparing the mini-app and the control arms. Qualitative interviews revealed the key barriers to PrEP uptake include anticipated stigma and discrimination in clinical settings, burden of PrEP care, and limited operating hours of the PrEP clinic. In-person clinic navigation support was highly valued.
conclusionsThis pilot trial of a mobile phone-based PrEP mini-app demonstrated feasibility and identified limitations in facilitating PrEP uptake among Chinese GBMSM. Future improvements may include diversifying the content presentation in engaging media formats, adding user engagement features, and providing off-line in-clinic navigation support during initial PrEP visit. More efforts are needed to understand optimal strategies to identify and implement alternative PrEP provision models especially in highly stigmatized settings with diverse needs.
trial registrationTrial registration: The study was prospectively registered on clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04426656) on 11 June, 2020.
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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.