Text Messaging to Promote HIV Testing in Gay Men

NCT07165496 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: 62406S6 0541-01-10
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 400
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The rate of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) remains high among Peruvian men who have sex with men (MSM), and new prevention programs should be developed to reach and provide sexual health services to more MSM. The Internet is a feasible medium both for recruiting participants and for implementing projects with MSM in Lima, Peru. Likewise, in Peru, mobile phones are promising tools for carrying out HIV-related interventions due to the high rate of mobile phone penetration. The Internet is a way to reach MSM who do not attend traditional health centers due to the stigma associated with being homosexual. Since mobile phones can be used to promote health, the investigators proposed to design, implement, and evaluate an intervention using text messages to promote HIV testing among Peruvian MSM recruited online. To achieve this objective, the investigators conducted a randomized controlled trial to assess the efficacy of a text message-based intervention to promote HIV testing among MSM in Lima recruited via the Internet.

Conditions

HIV Testing

Keywords

HIV testing; HIV prevention; text messaging; men who have sex with men; health information technologies

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Number of participants who received an HIV test

  Having undergone HIV testing at one of the study-affiliated health centers

  From enrollment to the end of the 6-month follow-up period

Study Arms (2)

Intervention arm

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants received weekly text messages to promote health and HIV testing and were followed and supported by trained healthcare counselors through two-way communication. Participants were able to set up an appointment for HIV testing at no charge.

Behavioral: Text message-based intervention

Control arm

NO INTERVENTION

Participants were able to set up an appointment for HIV testing at no charge.

Interventions

Text message-based intervention BEHAVIORAL

Participants received weekly text messages to promote health and HIV testing and were followed and supported by trained healthcare counselors through two-way communication over a 12-week period. They were able to schedule a free HIV testing appointment at any time up to six months after enrollment.

Intervention arm

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: male
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Be male at birth
• Be 18 years of age or older
• Be a resident of Lima, Peru
• Report having had sex (oral or anal) with another man in the past 12 months
• Provide informed consent
• Own a mobile phone

You may not qualify if:

• Report being HIV-positive
• Have taken an HIV test within the past year

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia: lead

Study Sites (1)

Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia

Lima, Lima Province, Peru

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Homosexuality

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Sexuality; Sexual Behavior; Behavior

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: DIAGNOSTIC
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Principal Investigator

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 2, 2025
• First Posted: September 10, 2025
• Study Start: April 1, 2015
• Primary Completion: December 31, 2015
• Study Completion: December 31, 2015
• Last Updated: November 24, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-11

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

PE (1)