High Acceptability of Donating Hair and other Biological Samples for Research Among People Living with HIV in an Outpatient Clinic in Lagos, Nigeria.

Background Willingness to donate hair samples is a rate-limiting step for assaying antiretroviral (ARV) concentrations in hair, an emerging technique for HIV prevention and treatment monitoring. We surveyed ethnically diverse Nigerians to determine their willingness to donate hair for biomedical research. Methods A cross-sectional survey of persons living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy (ART) was conducted at the HIV clinic of the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, using systematic sampling. The researcher-administered questionnaire was designed to capture sociodemographic data, length of time on ART, and willingness to donate hair. Univariate analysis was performed on sociodemographic characteristics, and independent-samples T-test and Chi-square tests were used for bivariate analysis. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to assess factors associated with willingness to donate hair samples, with a significance level of 0.05. Results Of the 398 participants enrolled in the study, 258 (64.8%) were female, the average age was 40 years (±9.8), and the average time spent on ART was 7.3 years (±4.2). Over half (64.8%) of the respondents were willing to donate hair samples for biomedical research and they were 1.5 times more likely to donate hair than blood. For one-third of the participants, the anticipated benefit from the eventual research findings was the primary motivation to donate hair samples. Fear of use of hair for rituals was the most commonly stated reason for unwillingness to donate hair samples (21.2%). Conclusion In an ethnically diverse, urban-based Nigerian study population, nearly two-thirds of the participants were willing to donate hair samples for biomedical research. These findings support the feasibility of hair sampling for future HIV clinical research conducted within Nigeria.