VMMC at IAS 2021

Voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) for HIV prevention will be featured in 11 posters at the virtual 11th IAS Conference on HIV Science (IAS 2021) from 18 to 21 July 2021.

A late-breaker about how COVID-19-related disruptions in VMMC services have affected HIV incidence in Zimbabwe is one of several VMMC posters addressing the impact of and response to the novel coronavirus. Others will examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on PEFAR-supported VMMC services, its impact on service quality and HIV transmission in South Africa, and the service adaptations made to maintain VMMC services in Ethiopia’s Gambella region.

Additional posters will present data on HIV risk compensation and VMMC, improving the safety of services, and generating demand for VMMC.

VMMC services offer opportunities to engage men in health care and help fill gaps in HIV prevention for men and adolescent boys. The International AIDS Society is sponsoring a satellite session, “Men and HIV in sub-Saharan Africa: Men as healthcare providers, peers in service delivery and patients,” on Monday, 19 July, from 17:00 to 18:00 CEST.

The following e-posters will be available on the conference website from 17 July 2021 at noon CEST:

Poster Session P01-C25 – Male Circumcision

PEC281 – Characterizing the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on PEPFAR-supported voluntary medical male circumcision services, 2020

Presenter: Megan Peck, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USA

PEC282 – Changes in the quality of voluntary medical male circumcision services in selected districts of the Mpumalanga, Eastern Cape, Free State and North West Provinces of South Africa

Presenter: Tawanda Nyengerai, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

PEC283 – HIV Prevention in COVID-19 lockdown: The impact of suspending VMMC in SA and the subsequent effects on HIV transmission dynamics

Presenter: Jacqueline Pienaar, Centre for HIV-AIDS Prevention Studies, South Africa 

PEC284 – Demand creation and voluntary medical male circumcision during COVID-19 pandemic

Presenter: Menzi Ginindza, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Eswatini

PEC285 – Association between medical male circumcision and HIV risk compensation among heterosexual men: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Presenter: Yanxiao Gao, Sun Yat-sen University, China

PEC286 – PEC Experience with ShangRing circumcision in Malawi voluntary medical male circumcision program

Presenter: Nandi Owuor, Population Services International, Malawi

 

Poster Session PE01-C35 – HIV Prevention Adaptations during COVID-19

PEC333 – Maintaining Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) services amid COVID-19 outbreak in Gambella Region, Ethiopia

Presenter: Teruwork GULTIE, ICAP, Ethiopia

 

PEDLB32 – Applying mathematical modeling to understand the COVID-19 related impact of VMMC service disruption on new infections in Zimbabwe

Presenter: Newton Chagoma, Clinton Health Access Initiative, USA

 

Poster Session PE01-C46 – Use of the Internet, Social Media, Mobile Phones and Other E-devices for Prevention

PEC365 – WeChat reminders to improve the willingness to undergo voluntary medical male circumcision for HIV prevention among men who have sex with men: a randomized controlled trial

Presenter: Yanxiao Gao, Sun Yat-sen University, China

 

PEC366 – Improving safety and quality of safe male circumcision services (SMC) in Uganda: adverse events quality improvement collaborative

Presenter: Jenkins Tanga Obbo, MakSPH METS Program, Uganda

 

PED636 – Evaluation of factors influencing uptake of voluntary medical male circumcision amongst males in the pivot age group (15-29 years) in East Central Uganda

Presenter: Keith Baleeta, University Research Co., LLC, USAID RHITES EC Project, Uganda