Title
Adolescent HIV-related behavioural prediction using machine learning: a foundation for precision HIV prevention
UMMS Affiliation
Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences
Publication Date
2021-05-01
Document Type
Article
Disciplines
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics | Behavior and Behavior Mechanisms | Epidemiology | Virus Diseases
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Precision prevention is increasingly important in HIV prevention research to move beyond universal interventions to those tailored for high-risk individuals. The current study was designed to develop machine learning algorithms for predicting adolescent HIV risk behaviours.
METHODS: Comprehensive longitudinal data on adolescent risk behaviours, perceptions, peer and family influence, and neighbourhood risk factors were collected from 2564 grade-10 students at baseline followed for 24 months over 2008-2012. Machine learning techniques [support vector machine (SVM) and random forests] were applied to innovatively leverage longitudinal data for robust HIV risk behaviour prediction. In this study, we focused on two adolescent risk behaviours: had ever had sex and had multiple sex partners. Twenty percent of the data were withheld for model testing.
RESULTS: The SVM model with cost-sensitive learning achieved the highest sensitivity, at 79.1%, specificity of 75.4% with AUC of 0.86 in predicting multiple sex partners on the training data (10-fold cross-validation), and sensitivity of 79.7%, specificity of 76.5% with AUC of 0.86 on the testing data. The random forest model obtained the best performance in predicting had ever had sex, yielding the sensitivity of 78.5%, specificity of 73.1% with AUC of 0.84 on the training data and sensitivity of 82.7%, specificity of 75.3% with AUC of 0.87 on the testing data.
CONCLUSION: Machine learning methods can be used to build effective prediction model(s) to identify adolescents who are likely to engage in HIV risk behaviours. This study builds a foundation for targeted intervention strategies and informs precision prevention efforts in school-setting.
Keywords
adolescent HIV risk behaviour, machine learning, multiple sex partners, prediction
DOI of Published Version
10.1097/QAD.0000000000002867
Source
Wang B, Liu F, Deveaux L, Ash A, Gosh S, Li X, Rundensteiner E, Cottrell L, Adderley R, Stanton B. Adolescent HIV-related behavioural prediction using machine learning: a foundation for precision HIV prevention. AIDS. 2021 May 1;35(Suppl 1):S75-S84. doi: 10.1097/QAD.0000000000002867. PMID: 33867490; PMCID: PMC8133351. Link to article on publisher's site
Journal/Book/Conference Title
AIDS (London, England)
PubMed ID
33867490
Related Resources
Repository Citation
Wang B, Liu F, Deveaux L, Ash AS, Gosh S, Li X, Rundensteiner E, Cottrell L, Adderley R, Stanton B. (2021). Adolescent HIV-related behavioural prediction using machine learning: a foundation for precision HIV prevention. Population and Quantitative Health Sciences Publications. https://doi.org/10.1097/QAD.0000000000002867. Retrieved from https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/qhs_pp/1406