CHIPTS Commitment to the Local Community

Continuing CHIPTS commitment to the local community, Dr. Veniegas and Mrs. Kao conducted workshops on HIV prevention evidence-based interventions and grant proposal preparation for the Proposal Preparedness Institute for Accion Mutua at the Los Angeles Convention Center January 15-18 and January 24-26. Dr. Veniegas led a workshop on submitting HIV grant proposals as part of this capacity-building institute sponsored by AIDS Project Los Angeles, Accion Mutua and the Los Angeles County Office of AIDS Programs and Policy.

With an estimated 4 million new HIV infections occurring annually worldwide, the development of new, safe, effective, and accessible prevention methods is urgently needed (Global HIV Prevention Working Group, 2006). Several new biomedical strategies to advance HIV prevention are currently being studied (i.e., microbicides, Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, herpes suppression, and diaphragms) and preliminary evidence suggests the potential impact of each of these approaches in slowing the spread of HIV. Another biomedical strategy, adult male circumcision, was recently shown to be effective in reducing a man’s risk of acquiring HIV through heterosexual intercourse by 51% to 53% (Sawires, et al., 2007). It is likely that within the next few years other biomedical methods will demonstrate efficacy and will be introduced for general use in community and clinical settings.

This presentation will highlight current research on biomarkers of psychosocial stress and how they may be helpful in HIV prevention and intervention efforts. Non-invasive neuroendocrine biomarkers (e.g., cortisol and catecholamines) from saliva and urine as well as routine health indicators (e.g., blood pressure, body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio) are increasingly used to quantify acute and chronic “stress”. When combined into a cumulative risk measure, these biomarkers are emerging as strong predictors of future mental and physical health and functioning in large scale population studies. A similar strategy may be useful for identifying individuals at greatest risk for HIV infection, targeting interventions for those most likely to experience poor outcomes once infected, and objectively assessing the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions for infected people. The preliminary findings, benefits and drawbacks of using biomarkers in an ongoing intervention study for HIV+ Latina and African American women in Los Angeles County will be discussed.

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 2006 CHIPTS ANNUAL REPORT