# HIV Risk and Psychosocial Health Among Transgender Women in Peru

> **NIH NIH R21** · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · 2020 · $228,599

## Abstract

Project Summary
Globally, transgender women (TW) are devastatingly burdened by HIV infection with an estimated 19.1%
prevalence (meta-analysis), a nearly 50-fold increased odds of HIV relative to the general population
worldwide. In Peru, TW are the most affected population, with 29.8%-48.8% HIV prevalence in the capital city
of Lima, and steep increases in HIV infection rates in those ages 25 years and older. Therefore, young
transgender women (YTW) ages 16-24 years constitute a critically important, yet understudied, group for early
primary HIV prevention efforts. Very little is known about the mental health and psychosocial vulnerabilities
(e.g., depression, posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD], substance use disorder, gender-based violence)
experienced by YTW in Peru. Concomitant mental health and other psychosocial health conditions resulting
from stigma, and during the critical developmental period of late adolescence and young adulthood, may
synergistically potentiate risk for HIV for YTW in Peru, and influence biobehavioral HIV prevention targets like
protected sex, sterile needle injecting practices, and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) uptake. Guided by a
psychosocial syndemics framework and Lifecourse Health Development model, the goal of this study is to: a)
characterize the prevalence, distribution, and correlates of HIV infection and related STI co-infections in YTW
ages 16-24 years in Lima, Peru, and b) assess co-occurring mental health and psychosocial conditions
(vulnerabilities and resiliencies) and their influence on HIV transmission risk. In Aim 1, we will conduct
formative in-depth interviews to understand developmental and psychosocial contexts of HIV risk for YTW in
Peru. We will also gather data on perceived acceptability and barriers/ facilitators to social network-based
recruitment methods. In Aim 2, we will characterize the prevalence, distribution, and correlates of HIV and STI-
coinfections, and multiple stigma-related health conditions (e.g., depression, PTSD, substance use disorder,
bullying, family rejection) in a sample of 400 YTW recruited via social network-based methods. We will
characterize the acceptability and rates of recruitment to inform future HIV prevention trials. In Aim 3, we will
test several statistical approaches to modeling co-occurring syndemic risk factors in YTW, and simultaneously
consider: the extent to which conditions in the aggregate are associated with HIV risk; the extent to which
conditions interact to intensify HIV risk. Reducing HIV disparities for transgender populations in Peru will
require reaching YTW ages 16-24 years for early HIV prevention. This study will increase scientific knowledge
of the multiple mental health and psychosocial intersecting epidemics fueling HIV risk and STI co-morbidities in
YTW. Findings will inform the design and implementation of biobehavioral HIV prevention interventions for
YTW in Peru, such as those which target developmentally-specific clusters of st...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10215849
- **Project number:** 7R21MH118110-02
- **Recipient organization:** BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Sari Reisner
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $228,599
- **Award type:** 7
- **Project period:** 2019-08-09 → 2023-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10215849

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10215849, HIV Risk and Psychosocial Health Among Transgender Women in Peru (7R21MH118110-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10215849. Licensed CC0.

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