Winter, Babette L; Hovaguimian, Frédérique; Kouyos, Roger D; Schmidt, Axel Jeremias; Bernasconi, Enos; Braun, Dominique L; Calmy, Alexandra; Notter, Julia; Stoeckle, Marcel; Surial, Bernard; +15 more... Christinet, Vanessa; Cavassini, Matthias; Depmeier, Carsten; Läuchli, Severin; Boffi El Amari, Emmanuelle; Reinacher, Matthias; Rasi, Manuela; Bruggmann, Philip; Haerry, David; Bize, Raphaël; Low, Nicola; Lehner, Andreas; Quednow, Boris B; Fehr, Jan S; Hampel, Benjamin; (2022) Changes in mental and sexual health among MSM using HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: longitudinal analysis of the SwissPrEPared cohort study. Swiss medical weekly, 152 (2526). w30192-. ISSN 1424-7860 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4414/smw.2022.w30192
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Changes in mental and sexual health among men having sex with men (MSM) due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic remain unclear. METHODS: Design: Longitudinal analysis of an ongoing, multicentre, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) cohort (NCT03893188) in Switzerland. Participants: HIV-negative MSM aged ≥18 who completed at least one questionnaire before and one after the start of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Outcomes: Primary: mental health, defined as anxiety and depression scores assessed by the Patient Health Questionnaire-4. Secondary: sexual behaviour, well-being, PrEP use and disruption of care. Outcomes were assessed over seven periods corresponding to different SARS-CoV-2 prevention measures in Switzerland. We performed pairwise comparisons between periods (Wilcoxon signed rank test). RESULTS: Data from 1,043 participants were included. Whilst anxiety scores remained stable over time, depression scores worsened in the second wave and the second lockdown period compared to pre-pandemic scores. This was confirmed by pairwise comparisons (pre-SARS-CoV-2/second wave and pre-SARS-CoV-2/second lockdown: p <0.001). Downward trends in sexual activity,sexualized substance use, and a switch from daily to "event-driven" PrEP were found. Disruption of care affected 42.6% (790/1856) of daily PrEP users' follow-up visits. CONCLUSION: In this longitudinal analysis of a PrEP cohort enrolling MSM, depression scores worsened in the second wave and the second lockdown compared to the pre-pandemic period.
Item Type | Article |
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Faculty and Department | Faculty of Public Health and Policy > Public Health, Environments and Society |
Research Centre | Covid-19 Research |
PubMed ID | 35758418 |
Elements ID | 181241 |
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