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Intervention aims to reduce HIV rates in Hispanic youth

Prado G. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2011;doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2011.189.

An intervention that focused on positive parenting and reducing sexual risk behaviors may make a dent in the HIV rates in Hispanic populations, according to a study published online.

Guillermo Prado, PhD, and colleagues of the department of epidemiology and public health, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, looked at data on 242 delinquent 12- to 17-year-old Hispanics who were enrolled in the Miami-Dade County juvenile justice system or the public school system.

The researchers randomly assigned 120 participants to Familias Unidas, which is a program designed to reduce risk behaviors through family communication, and 122 participants to a community practice control condition.

“Compared with community practices, Familias Unidas was efficacious in increasing condom use during vaginal and anal sex during the past 90 days, reducing the number of days adolescents were under the influence of drugs or alcohol and had sex without a condom, reducing sexual partners, and preventing unprotected anal sex at the last sexual intercourse,” the researchers wrote.

Prado and colleagues also noted improvements in parents’ self-reported measures of family interaction, including communication with their child and positive parenting.

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.

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