Ni Zhao, Batubara Intan Maharani Sulistyawati, Ndenkeh Jackson Jr Nforbewing, Bediang Georges, Yumo Habakkuk, Zhang Xuehong, Oh Sunyong, Zhao Yuchen, Nelson LaRon E
School of Nursing, Yale University, 400 West Campus Drive, Orange, CT, 06477, United States, 1 2037373039.
Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA), Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States.
JMIR Pediatr Parent. 2025 May 12;8:e69471. doi: 10.2196/69471.
Adolescent girls and young women in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) represent 4 out of every 5 newly diagnosed HIV cases among adolescent girls and young women globally. Leveraging augmented reality (AR) technology for HIV prevention and treatment holds significant potential among young people. However, there is a knowledge gap regarding the acceptance of AR by adolescent girls and young women in SSA.
This study aimed to assess the likelihood of adolescent girls and young women in Cameroon using AR for HIV testing, prevention, and treatment. The study findings will lay the groundwork for developing AR-based interventions to prevent and treat HIV in Cameroon and beyond.
This was a cross-sectional survey conducted in Yaounde, Cameroon, in which 637 adolescent girls and young women were recruited using a combination of multistage cluster and snowball sampling techniques. We used an electronic survey to collect data on participants' knowledge, prior use of AR technology, and likelihood of using AR technology for HIV prevention and treatment, and associated factors. Multivariate ordinal regressions were used to analyze the factors associated with the likelihood of adolescent girls and young women using AR to prevent HIV.
The study showed that 84% (536/637) of adolescent girls and young women had never heard of AR before this study, and only 8% (49/637) had prior experience using AR. Participants' median age was 22 (IQR 21-24) years, with the majority (362/637, 56.8%) aged between 21 and 25 years. Despite the low usage rate of AR among participants, there was a high likelihood of using AR to promote HIV prevention and treatment. Specifically, 72% (459/637) of participants reported that they were likely to use AR to visualize the HIV transmission process, while 73% (465/637) and 74% (471/637) reported the likelihood of using AR to learn about pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and how HIV medication lowers HIV viral load, respectively. More importantly, 54% (342/637) and 50% (319/637) of participants reported that they were extremely likely to use AR to learn the correct way of using condom and self-testing for HIV, respectively. The high likelihood of using AR to prevent and treat HIV was associated with a higher education level (P=.01), having ever tested for HIV (P=.03), and a history of previously using health apps or searching for health information on their phones (P<.001).
The likelihood of using AR technology to promote HIV prevention and treatment is high among adolescent girls and young women in Cameroon. Future research should focus on exploring the preferred features of AR-based digital health interventions and consider methods of implementing them in the context of Cameroon or SSA.
在全球新诊断出的感染艾滋病毒的少女和年轻女性中，撒哈拉以南非洲地区（SSA）的少女和年轻女性占五分之四。利用增强现实（AR）技术进行艾滋病毒预防和治疗在年轻人中具有巨大潜力。然而，SSA地区的少女和年轻女性对AR的接受程度存在知识空白。
本研究旨在评估喀麦隆少女和年轻女性使用AR进行艾滋病毒检测、预防和治疗的可能性。研究结果将为在喀麦隆及其他地区开发基于AR的艾滋病毒预防和治疗干预措施奠定基础。
这是一项在喀麦隆雅温得进行的横断面调查，采用多阶段整群抽样和雪球抽样技术相结合的方法招募了637名少女和年轻女性。我们使用电子调查问卷收集参与者的知识、AR技术的既往使用情况、使用AR技术进行艾滋病毒预防和治疗的可能性以及相关因素的数据。使用多变量有序回归分析与少女和年轻女性使用AR预防艾滋病毒可能性相关的因素。
研究表明，84%（536/637）的少女和年轻女性在本研究之前从未听说过AR，只有8%（49/637）有过使用AR的经历。参与者的中位年龄为22岁（四分位间距21 - 24岁），大多数（362/637，56.8%）年龄在21至25岁之间。尽管参与者中AR的使用率较低，但使用AR促进艾滋病毒预防和治疗的可能性很高。具体而言，72%（459/637）的参与者表示她们可能会使用AR来直观了解艾滋病毒传播过程，而73%（465/637）和74%（471/637）的参与者分别表示可能会使用AR来了解暴露前预防（PrEP）以及艾滋病毒药物如何降低艾滋病毒病毒载量。更重要的是，54%（342/637）和50%（319/637）的参与者分别表示她们极有可能使用AR来学习正确使用避孕套的方法和进行艾滋病毒自我检测。使用AR预防和治疗艾滋病毒的高可能性与较高的教育水平（P = 0.01）、曾经进行过艾滋病毒检测（P = 0.03）以及之前有使用健康应用程序或在手机上搜索健康信息的历史（P < 0.001）相关。
喀麦隆的少女和年轻女性使用AR技术促进艾滋病毒预防和治疗的可能性很高。未来的研究应侧重于探索基于AR的数字健康干预措施的首选功能，并考虑在喀麦隆或SSA地区实施这些措施的方法。
