Disparities of HIV risk and PrEP use among transgender women of color in South Florida.

Background:  The majority of the transgender female population in South Florida are Latina and Black, and are at greatest risk for acquiring HIV, yet there is limited research focused on South Florida transgender women of color. The study objective was to describe the disparities among racial/ethnic minority transgender women regarding HIV screening, pre exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) knowledge and PrEP utilization.

Methods: Sixty transgender women, recruited from South Florida community-based organizations, completed a questionnaire on HIV prevention and PrEP awareness and use. Univariate statistics were generated to describe sexual risk behavior, PrEP awareness and use, and HIV screening by race/ethnicity.

Results: Of the 60 participants, 50% were Latina, 35% African American/non-Hispanic Black (AA/NHB), 12% white and 3% other race/ethnicity.  75% reported being screened for HIV in the last 12 months, 15% of the participants reported living with HIV (PLWH), while 19% reported an unknown status. Compared to Latinas, AA/NHB demonstrated more risk (>1 sexual partner: 76% vs 57%; transactional sex: 49% vs. 29%; unprotected receptive anal sex: 43% v. 27%), yet had less engagement in routine care (77% vs. 86%).  PrEP knowledge was 77% among Latinas, 71% among whites, 48% among Blacks, and 50% among other race/ethnicity. 65% of participants knew about PrEP. Of the 8% with current or previous PrEP use, none were African American.

Conclusion: Findings suggest that education and public health campaigns in South Florida that promote HIV prevention should focus on increasing awareness and utilization of PrEP among racial/ethnic minority transgender, particularly among AA/NHB transgender women who are most at risk and had the lowest knowledge and use of PrEP.

Methods
Data was collected via questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS 22.0

研究背景：南佛罗里达州的跨性别女性群体中，多数为拉丁裔与非裔人群，且该群体感染人类免疫缺陷病毒（Human Immunodeficiency Virus, HIV）的风险最高，但目前针对南佛罗里达州非白人跨性别女性的相关研究仍较为匮乏。本研究旨在阐述种族/族裔少数群体跨性别女性在HIV筛查、暴露前预防（Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, PrEP）认知及PrEP使用方面存在的健康差异。
研究方法：本研究从南佛罗里达州的社区基层组织招募了60名跨性别女性，让其填写关于HIV预防与PrEP认知及使用情况的调查问卷。通过单变量统计分析，描述不同种族/族裔群体的性风险行为、PrEP认知与使用情况以及HIV筛查现状。
研究结果：60名参与者中，50%为拉丁裔，35%为非西班牙裔非裔美国人（AA/NHB），12%为白人，3%为其他种族/族裔群体。75%的参与者报告在过去12个月内接受过HIV筛查；15%的参与者自述为HIV感染者（People Living with HIV, PLWH），另有19%的参与者自述HIV感染状况未知。与拉丁裔群体相比，非西班牙裔非裔美国人的性风险行为更为突出：拥有≥2个性伴侣的比例为76%（拉丁裔为57%）、存在交易性性行为的比例为49%（拉丁裔为29%）、发生无保护被动肛交的比例为43%（拉丁裔为27%），但该群体的常规诊疗参与率更低（77% vs. 86%）。拉丁裔群体的PrEP认知率为77%，白人群体为71%，非裔群体为48%，其他种族/族裔群体为50%。整体而言，65%的参与者知晓PrEP。在目前或既往使用过PrEP的8%参与者中，无一人为非裔美国人。
研究结论：本研究结果提示，南佛罗里达州开展的HIV预防教育与公共卫生宣传活动，应聚焦于提升种族/族裔少数群体跨性别女性对PrEP的认知与使用情况，尤其是针对非西班牙裔非裔跨性别女性——该群体感染HIV的风险最高，且PrEP认知率与使用率均处于最低水平。
数据收集与分析：本研究通过调查问卷收集数据，并采用SPSS 22.0统计软件进行分析。