Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of men who have sex with men and male-to-female transgender participants of the PICASSO study, Lima, Peru, 2013–2014
| Characteristic | MSM | Transwomen |
|---|---|---|
| n (N = 312) (%) | n (N = 89) (%) | |
| Survey | ||
| Age median years (Interquartile range [IQR]) | 29.0 (23.3, 37.4) | 32.5 (27.2, 39.5) |
| Income less than living wagea | 87 (27.9) | 62 (76.5) |
| Education | ||
| Primary school or less | 7 (2.2) | 8 (9.0) |
| Secondary school or less | 111 (35.6) | 65 (73.0) |
| Vocational school graduate | 69 (22.1) | 11 (12.4) |
| University student | 90 (28.9) | 3 (3.4) |
| University graduate or higher | 40 (11.2) | 2 (2.3) |
| Work | ||
| Full time | 157 (50.3) | 33 (37.1) |
| Part time | 41 (13.1) | 23 (25.8) |
| Odd jobs | 46 (14.7) | 26 (29.2) |
| Unemployed or does not work | 68 (21.8) | 7 (7.9) |
| Use of antibiotics in the last 3 months | 123 (39.4) | 37 (41.6) |
| Use of un-prescribed injections in the last 3 months | 93 (29.8) | 27 (30.3) |
| Comorbidities (by self-report in the survey): | ||
| Prior diagnosis of syphilis | 111 (35.6) | 35 (39.3) |
| Prior diagnosis of HIV | 62 (24.1) | 21 (27.6) |
| Not taking ART | 34/62 (54.8) | 11/21 (52.4) |
| Recent syphilis by laboratory testing | 8/34 (23.5) | 1/11 (9.1) |
| Diagnosis of STI in the last 6 months | 22/34 (64.7) | 5/11 (45.5) |
| Primary role during anal sex | ||
| Insertive | 87 (27.9) | 2 (2.3) |
| Receptive | 68 (21.8) | 60 (67.4) |
| Versatile (e.g. both) | 157 (50.3) | 27 (30.3) |
| Stableb partner, last 3 months | 141 (45.2) | 47 (52.8) |
| Sex with a male partner, last 3 months | 312 (100) | 81 (100) |
| Median number of male partner(s), last 3 months (IQR) | 4 (2, 7) | 15 (5, 40) |
| Sex with a female partner, last 3 months | 45 (14.4) | 1 (1.1) |
| Alcohol use disorder (AUDIT score > 8) | 139 (44.6) | 42 (47.2) |
| Laboratory | ||
| Syphilis infection | ||
| Recent syphilis (RPR ≥ 1:16) | 52 (16.8) | 6 (6.7) |
| Prior syphilis infectionc (RPR between 1:1–1:8) | 79 (25.3) | 45 (50.6) |
| No syphilis infectiond | 157 (50.8) | 38 (42.7) |
| HIV infection | 94 (30.1) | 30 (33.7) |
| Total Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) | 57 (18.6) | 22 (24.7) |
| Anal CT | 43 (14.1) | 12 (13.5) |
| Pharyngeal CT | 14 (4.5) | 10 (11.2) |
| Total Neisseria gonorrheae (NG) | 44 (14.2) | 17 (19.1) |
| Anal NG | 26 (8.4) | 10 (11.2) |
| Pharyngeal NG | 18 (5.8) | 7 (7.9) |
| Co-infections with recent syphilis (n = 58, MSM [N = 52]; Transwomen [N = 6]) | ||
| HIV | 23 (44.2) | 4 (66.7) |
| Total CT | 21 (40.4) | 0 (0) |
| Anal CT | 17 (32.7) | 0 (0) |
| Pharyngeal CT | 4 (7.7) | 0 (0) |
| Total NG | 10 (19.2) | 1 (16.7) |
| Anal NG | 6 (11.5) | 1 (16.7) |
| Pharyngeal NG | 4 (7.7) | 0 (0) |
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV); antiretroviral therapy (ART); Rapid plasma reagin (RPR); Treponema Pallidum Particle Agglutination (TPPA); Chlamydia trachomatis (CT); Neisseria gonorrheae (NG); and sexually transmitted infection (STI)
aLiving wage was approximately $250 USD per month in 2013–2014
bThe participant self-identified that they had a stable sexual partner
cTPPA positive individuals that did not meet criteria for recently acquired syphilis infection
dRPR-negative and TPPA-negative individuals