PrEP choices to prevent HIV for young Kenyan women seeking reproductive care
Effectiveness of PrEP product choice on HIV prevention coverage among young women in Kenya seeking reproductive health services
This project compares daily PrEP pills, a monthly vaginal ring, and injectable PrEP to find which option helps young women getting reproductive health care in Kenya stay protected from HIV.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Alabama at Birmingham NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Birmingham, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11401653 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you are a young woman getting reproductive health services in Kenya, researchers will offer different HIV prevention options including daily oral PrEP, a dapivirine vaginal ring, and periodic injectable cabotegravir. Clinic staff will be trained to offer these choices, link supplies, and support women who start a product. The team will track who starts and continues each PrEP product, how often people stop, and how many women remain covered against HIV over time. Researchers will use these real-world clinic experiences to learn which ways of offering PrEP help the most women stay protected.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are HIV-negative young women (roughly ages 15–30) attending participating reproductive health clinics in Kenya who are at risk for HIV.
Not a fit: This project will not benefit people who are already living with HIV, who do not receive care at the participating Kenyan clinics, or who have medical reasons they cannot use the PrEP products being offered.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help more young women remain protected from HIV by matching them to the PrEP option they can use consistently.
How similar studies have performed: Clinical trials have shown that injectable cabotegravir and the dapivirine ring can prevent HIV and sometimes outperform daily pills, but testing how offering multiple choices in routine clinics affects real-world coverage is less common.
Where this research is happening
Birmingham, United States
- University of Alabama at Birmingham — Birmingham, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Heffron, Renee a. — University of Alabama at Birmingham
- Study coordinator: Heffron, Renee a.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.