Young people in Rakai affected by parental HIV loss

Rakai Orphans in Communities

['FUNDING_R01'] · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · NIH-11168972

Looking at how losing a parent to HIV affects the health, schooling, and economic lives of adolescents and young adults in Rakai, Uganda.

Quick facts

Phase['FUNDING_R01']
Study typeNih_funding
SexAll
SponsorCOLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES (nih funded)
Locations1 site (NEW YORK, UNITED STATES)
Trial IDNIH-11168972 on ClinicalTrials.gov

What this research studies

You would see whether losing one or both parents to HIV changes your chances of getting HIV, staying in school, or earning money as you grow up. The team will use long-term community health data, household surveys, and clinic records from Rakai to link the age when a parent died to later health and social outcomes. They will compare young people who were orphaned at different ages with those who were not orphaned, and consider how wider access to HIV treatment and prevention has changed these patterns. The work combines social, economic, and medical information to suggest better ways to support families and adolescents.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: Adolescents and young adults living in Rakai, Uganda, especially those who lost one or both parents to HIV or who experienced adolescence during declines in HIV-related deaths, would be ideal participants.

Not a fit: People living outside Rakai or in settings with very different HIV epidemics or social systems may not receive direct benefit from the study's local findings.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, the work could guide programs and policies to better protect adolescents who lost parents to HIV and reduce their risk of HIV and economic hardship.

How similar studies have performed: Prior research links orphanhood to higher HIV risk and worse social outcomes, but studying how declining orphanhood due to better HIV treatment changes those risks is a newer approach.

Where this research is happening

NEW YORK, UNITED STATES

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.

View on NIH RePORTER →

Conditions: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Virus, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome Virus

Last reviewed 2026-05-15 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.