A Community-based, Behavioral Intervention to Improve Screening for Hepatitis C Among High-risk Young Adults in Wisconsin (Hep-Net)

January 9, 2019 updated by: University of Wisconsin, Madison
The goal of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief, computerized behavioral intervention for promoting screening for hepatitis C and reducing risky behavior for people who inject drugs (PWID).

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

People who inject drugs (PWID) are at high risk for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection if they share contaminated injection equipment with others. Many are infected but are unaware of it, making it likely they will transmit the virus to others if they share contaminated injecting equipment. Problems related to hepatitis C can be avoided if people know their status by getting tested and referred to treatment.

In this study, the investigators will recruit eligible PWID in several cities in Wisconsin using a social networks strategy, in which clients who receive services at a syringe exchange program are asked to refer peers who also inject drugs to participate in the study. All participants will undergo a baseline computerized risk assessment that elicits information about hepatitis C status, previous testing, transmission risk behaviors, and overdose risk. Participants will then be randomly-assigned to receive either standard risk reduction counseling from a prevention specialist, or computerized tailored risk reduction messages that are specific to their reported risk behaviors, attitudes and beliefs. A follow-up assessment will be completed after 3 months to evaluate changes in behavioral risk and intention to undergo HCV screening. A database will be searched to determine which participants returned for HCV screening within 12 months of enrollment, and of those, which ones tested positive for HCV.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

235

Phase

  • Not Applicable

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

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 18 or over
  • English-speaking
  • Reports injection of illicit drugs in the past month

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Unable to provide informed consent due to cognitive impairment
  • Unwilling to provide personal locator information and consent to be contacted for follow-up after 3 months.
  • Currently known to be pregnant

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: Screening
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Usual care
Standard health education and prevention counseling by trained staff
Behavioral: Usual Care
Clients receive health education and risk reduction counseling from a trained prevention specialist.
Experimental: Hep-Net Intervention
Computerized tailored behavioral intervention
Behavioral: Usual Care
Clients receive health education and risk reduction counseling from a trained prevention specialist.
Behavioral: Hep-Net Intervention
The Hep-Net Intervention is a web-based questionnaire and tailored feedback system designed to increase readiness to change with respect to several behaviors. The behaviors include (1) reducing or quitting drug use; (2) using sterile equipment every time one injects drugs; (3) undergoing screening for hepatitis C; (4) receiving training to use naloxone to prevent death due to opioid overdose.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Screening for hepatitis C infection
Time Frame: 12 months
Participants will be followed for 12 months to determine whether they undergo repeated screening for hepatitis C
12 months

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Collaborators

AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Ryan Westergaard, MD, PhD, University of Wisconsin, Madison

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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

August 1, 2014

Primary Completion (Actual)

August 1, 2016

Study Completion (Actual)

August 1, 2016

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 15, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 15, 2015

First Posted (Estimate)

June 17, 2015

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

January 11, 2019

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 9, 2019

Last Verified

January 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2013-1360

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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