A Formative Study to Explore the Sensory Perceptions of Vaginal Product Users (Project-MIST)

October 7, 2025 updated by: The Miriam Hospital

Rational Development of Combination Microbicide Therapies: A Formative Study to Explore the Sensory Perceptions of Vaginal Product Users (Project MIST)

The purpose of the study is to compare, contrast, and characterize the range of user perceptions and potential acceptability of three (3) topical vaginal microbicide dosage forms.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

The success of microbicide products will derive from the synergy of their biological functionality and user acceptability. Biological functionality is the integrated result of safe and effective anti-HIV compounds incorporated into dosage forms or devices that successfully deliver those compounds to target tissues, fluids, and pathogens. Acceptability is a multi-factorial phenomenon that accounts for the personal, dyadic, product-related, and social contexts that potentiate - or not - a woman's decision to use a microbicide. Acceptability (assessed, in part, by the users' sensory perceptions of products during use) depends strongly upon dosage forms and/or delivery systems with biophysical functions and/or mechanical and materials properties that are most conducive to human use. Without both, microbicides' potential to decisively alter the public health impact of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections will be largely limited. The current protocol will specifically study the impact of gel volume on user perceptions, as well as extend user perception scale development to include those properties and product "behaviors" experienced when using a vaginal film.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
48

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Rhode Island
      • Providence, Rhode Island, United States, 02906
        • Miriam Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Women who:

  • are between the ages of 18 and 45
  • report vaginal sex with their male sexual partner in the past 6 months
  • report being in a monogamous sexual relationship with their male partner
  • report consistent use of an effective birth control method: e.g., hormonal contraceptive, IUD, bilateral tubal ligation, Essure® or any non-incisional permanent birth control procedure, hysterectomy (partial or total, with/without oophorectomy), partner's vasectomy/salpingectomy
  • are able to tolerate film use, as measured by pelvic exam at Visit 1B
  • are willing to refrain from any vaginal product use (inclusive of douching) for 48 hours before Visit 1B and until they complete all study activities (except for study-related products)
  • are willing to refrain from having vaginal intercourse 24 hours before Visit 1B and Visits 2-4
  • are willing to use condoms for vaginal-penile sex between all study visits (Visits 1A - 4)
  • are willing to refrain from any non-penile vaginal penetration during dosage form evaluation visits (Visits 2-4)
  • are willing to undergo HIV testing and receive test results and counseling.

Men who:

  • are at least 18 years of age
  • report vaginal sex with their female sexual partner in the past 6 months
  • report being in a monogamous sexual relationship with their female sexual partner
  • are willing to refrain from having vaginal intercourse 24 hours before Visit 1B and Visits 2-4
  • are willing to use condoms for vaginal-penile sex between all of study visits (Visits 1A-4)
  • are willing to refrain from any non-penile vaginal penetration during dosage form evaluation visits (Visits 2-4)
  • are willing to use a non-lubricated latex condom (provided) for penile-vaginal intercourse during dosage form evaluation visits (Visits 2-4)
  • are willing to undergo HIV testing and receive test results and counseling.

Exclusion Criteria:

Women and men will be ineligible if:

  • they are unable or unwilling to give informed consent
  • their partner is unable or unwilling to give informed consent
  • they are currently enrolled in other vaginal product study/studies
  • they are STI (Neisseria gonorrhea, Chlamydia trachomatis, bacterial vaginosis, trichomoniasis, syphilis), HIV positive upon screening (Visit 1A), or pregnant (females) at any study visit
  • they are breastfeeding, or have completed menopause (i.e., at least 12 months without menstrual periods) (female participants only)
  • they are currently attempting to get pregnant or have an intention to get pregnant during their participation in the study
  • they have clinically significant abnormal pelvic findings and/or findings requiring therapy as a function of clinical exam at Visits 1A and/or 1B (female participants only)
  • they report being within 30 days of their last pregnancy outcome or gynecologic surgical procedure
  • they have known, or suspected, allergies to any component of the study products or similar ingredients in other products
  • they have known, or suspected, allergies to latex
  • they have any condition that, in the opinion of the study clinician or principle investigator, would compromise the participant´s ability to participate in the study

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Other: Formulations
high volume gel; low volume gel; vaginal film
Other: high volume gel
4 mL HEC
Other Names:
  • Gray
Other: low volume gel
2 mL HEC
Other Names:
  • Red
Other: vaginal film
1" x 2" intravaginal quick-dissolving film
Other Names:
  • Blue

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
User Sensory Perception & Experience (USPE; Perceptibility) Scale Item Means
Time Frame: 4-5 visits over an average of 8-12 weeks
USPE Sum of averaged item means/# items (min:max 1:5); 1=Do not agree at all;2=Agree a little;3=Agree somewhat;4=Agree a lot;5=Agree completely. Products:Low volume gel, high volume gel, film.Initial Penetration:Smoothness/lubricity; Initial Lubrication:Coating/lubricating; Spreading Behavior:Ease of stroke, product spread; Product Awareness:Feel intravaginally during sex (movement, felt betw vaginal wall-penis); Perceived Wetness:Covering entire vagina; as after orgasm; Stimulating: enhanced pleasure; Messiness:Perceptions of watery/messiness; Leakage:Sensations of leaking during/after sex; in pubic hair; need to clean; Pre-coital Leakage:Product felt/leakage noticed on panty liner before sex; Naturalness:Sensation of naturalness; leakage looked like vaginal fluid; Lubricity:Wetness before sex; slipperiness/lubricity during sex; Effortful:Effort needed at penetration; effort difficulty/dryness; Pleasure:Partner's stimulation; Noticeable:Male sensation during sex, messiness, thickness
4-5 visits over an average of 8-12 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
The Miriam Hospital

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
ImQuest Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Robert Buckheit, PhD, ImQuest Pharmaceuticals
  • Principal Investigator: Kathleen Morrow, PhD, The Miriam Hospital

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
April 1, 2011

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 1, 2012

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
April 11, 2011

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 12, 2011

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
April 13, 2011

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 15, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 7, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 11800
  • R33AI076967 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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